New York Knicks basketball legend Dick Barnett died over the weekend in his sleep at an assisted living facility in Florida, according to the New York Post.
The Knicks announced Barnett's death on Monday.
He played in the NBA for 14 seasons and was traded to the Knicks by the Lakers in 1965. During his eight seasons with the Knicks, he led them to two championships in 1970 and 1973.
He averaged 21 points a game with the Knicks and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2024.
Barnett got the nickname "Fallback Baby" for his unique jump shot, during which he kicked his feet up and back, then fell back a little bit on the way down.
Examples of what it looked like are shown in the video below.
Another unique thing about Barnett was that he was a lefty.
“He’s one of the architects who built the legacy of what the Knicks were about,” his successor Earl Monroe said. “No one can ever forget that.”
“Dick was one of the leaders of that team,” teammate Phil Jackson said. “I really thought he held a big piece of our success in the late ’60s and early ’70s.”
“He’s got one of the best basketball minds of any player I’ve ever known,” Eddie Donovan, the Knicks general manager who acquired Barnett from the Lakers, said. “Everything he does is for a purpose.”
After retiring from basketball, Barnett authored multiple books, earned a doctorate from Fordham University, and taught sports management at St. John’s.
He credited an Achilles tendon injury early in his career with causing him to focus on his studies and get his degree, just in case he couldn't keep playing ball.
“Dreams really do come true,” he told the MSG Network in 2020. “Life is a continuum. Just because I achieved this goal doesn’t mean I’m through. There are other goals."
