#3 Rick Barry- 16,447 Points
Through the years, Rick Barry’s unusual and unorthodox free-throws have been remembered. The Warrior shot free-throws underhanded and thus managed one of the greatest free-throw percentages in NBA history.
However, what has gotten forgotten is Barry’s brilliance as a pure basketball player. In fact, the maverick was one of the best small forwards in NBA history.
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Like so many great players of that bygone era, Barry was ready for the NBA in his first season as he averaged 25.7 points per game in his first season for the Warriors. In the next season, Barry was one of the best players in the NBA as he averaged more than 35 points per game.
That season he helped lead the Warriors to the finals where they were beaten by the 76ers (by then led by a certain Wilt Chamberlain).
After that point, Barry was embroiled in a pay dispute with the franchise and left for the ABA. When he returned in 1972, he was as good as ever- eventually being Finals MVP as the Warriors finally won a championship in San Francisco in the 1974-75 season.
Barry could score from anywhere, inside, outside and of course the free-throw line. Imagine what his NBA numbers would have been if he hadn't spent four years in the ABA.
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