Dick Barnett

Early years, family and education

Barnett was born in Gary, Indiana, on October 2, 1936. His father worked as a steel worker, and his mother was employed at a candy store. As a youth, he worked at a steel mill and made deliveries. He attended Theodore Roosevelt High School, where he became one of Indiana's top basketball players. In his senior year, his team reached the state championship, the first final between two predominantly African American squads, losing to Crispus Attucks High School and future NBA star Oscar Robertson. He earned All-state honors. Barnett attended Tennessee A&I State College, a historically black school, but did not graduate there. He later earned a bachelor's degree from Cal Poly Pomona, an MBA from New York University, and a PhD in education from Fordham University.

College athletic career

Barnett played college basketball for Tennessee A&I State College under coach John McLendon. As a freshman he was nicknamed "Dick the Skull." He became known for his trademark "question mark" jump shot, kicking his legs back as he released the ball with his left hand and taunting defenders by saying, "Too late; Fall back baby." He was a three-time Associated Press Little College All-American and helped the Tigers achieve a 36-game winning streak and three consecutive NAIA national championships.

He received back-to-back most valuable player honors in the 1958 and 1959 NAIA tournaments. Tennessee A&I became the first historically black college to win an integrated men's basketball title. Barnett graduated as the school's all-time scorer with 3,209 points (23.6 average) in 136 games, along with 1,571 rebounds (11.6 average), a 44.8 field-goal percentage, and 80.0 free-throw percentage. He was inducted into multiple halls of fame, including the NAIA Hall of Fame (1986), Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame (1993), Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame (2005), National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame (2007), and Small College Basketball Hall of Fame (2016).

His No. 12 jersey was retired by the school in 1990. The 1957–59 Tennessee A&I Tigers team was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2019.

Professional basketball career

Barnett was selected by the Syracuse Nationals with the fourth overall pick in the 1959 NBA draft. He served as a sixth man behind guards Larry Costello and Hal Greer, averaging 12.4 points as a rookie and 16.9 points in his second season. In 1961 he signed with the Cleveland Pipers of the American Basketball League, coached by John McLendon and owned by George Steinbrenner, and won the 1961–62 ABL championship. On December 21, 1961, the Nationals obtained a court order barring him from playing that season in the ABL.

On September 7, 1962, Syracuse sold his rights to the Los Angeles Lakers for $35,000, then the highest player-for-money transaction in league history. With the Lakers he again played as a sixth man behind Elgin Baylor and Jerry West, helping the team win the Western Division title after West missed 27 games with an injury. Lakers announcer Chick Hearn nicknamed him "Fall Back Baby." He averaged 16.8 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 2.7 assists over three seasons with the Lakers.

On October 14, 1965, he was traded to the New York Knicks for Bob Boozer and cash. In his first season with the Knicks he led the team in scoring with a 23.1 average. He made his only All-Star appearance in 1968. He helped the Knicks win NBA championships in 1970 and 1973, both against the Lakers.

He was released on October 23, 1973, having scored 15,358 regular-season points. In 1990 the Knicks retired his No. 12 jersey at Madison Square Garden.