Dick Barnett — Educator, Activist, Leader — Leaves a Legacy Larger Than Just Basketball

The call came sometime in 2011. Dick Barnett was on the other end and he didn’t mince words. “Barnett here,” he said in a deep, grizzled voice. “Look, man, I’m trying to get my college team into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, and I’m hoping you can get on board.”Initially, it seemed odd. Barnett had already accomplished more than most in his decorated basketball career, winning three consecutive NAIA national championships at Tennessee State, two NBA Championships with the New York Knicks during a 14-year pro career, and having his No.12 jersey retired to the rafters of Madison Square Garden.Yet, instead of resting on his laurels, he was determined to have his college team, Tennessee A&I, recognized for being the first to win three straight college national tournaments in 1957, 1958, and 1959. The three-peat came seven years before Texas Western became the first school to start five Black players and win an NCAA title. Those Miners were in the Hall of Fame, and Barnett thought his team deserved equal status, considering their titles came in the height of segregation in the Jim Crow South.Barnett died in his sleep on the weekend in Florida, the Knicks announced late Sunday night. He was 88. While most remembrances will discuss his basketball exploits, it was his dogged determination to see his college teams inducted into the Hall of Fame that illustrate what Dick Barnett was about.It took nearly a decade of traveling the country, lobbying school administrators, politicians, and activists to garner enough attention and votes for induction. Undeterred by denials for eight straight years, Barnett finally took the stage in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 2019 to represent his Tennessee A&I team for induction.“No lie can live forever,” Barnett often said.I was honored to be an executive producer of the “Dream Whisperer,” the documentary directed by Eric Drath that chronicles Barnett’s determined pursuit of recognition. Filmed over a decade, the documentary features commentary from John Thompson, David Stern, Julius Erving, Bill Bradley, Clyde Frazier, several of his living TSU teammates, and the widow of the late coach John McLendon.With his team finally inducted, Barnett lobbied for a trip to the White House, where all national champions visit. It was long overdue. Ultimately, that day became a reality in April 2024 when several living players, most of them in wheelchairs, visited with Vice President Harris.In September, Barnett received the ultimate individual honor as he was enshrined as a member of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, Class of 2024.“Better late than never,” he told The New York Sun. “It’s almost like a dream. I’ve thought about it for years.”Most will remember the native of Gary, Indiana, for his left-handed “Fall Back Baby” jump shot. After stints with the Syracuse Nationals and the Los Angeles Lakers, he teamed with Willis Reed, Jerry Lucas, Dave DeBusschere, Earl “The Pearl” Monroe, Bradley, and Mr. Frazier to win the Knicks’ only championships in 1970 and 1973.A scoring machine in college, he averaged 23.1 points a game during his first season in New York in 1965. Yet with the arrival of more talent, he became a leader who brought the best out of others. “He was the veteran who showed me how to be a pro,” Mr. Frazier once told the Sun.Longtime Knicks announcer Mike Breen said recently the sacrifice Barnett made “was enormous” for the sake of winning championships. “He could have scored more,” Mr. Breen told the Sun, “but because he was part of a fantastic team, it was all about winning.”As an athlete, Barnett didn’t care much about the classroom. When someone asked about his GPA, he responded, “25 points a game.”A torn Achilles tendon in his second year with the Knicks prompted him to have a Plan B. That’s when he returned to school and eventually earned his doctorate in sports management from Fordham. In his later years, he established the Dr. Barnett Foundation to inspire youth to chase their dreams. He also authored more than 20 books that explored race and culture.“I call myself the Dream Whisperer because everything starts with a dream,” Barnett says in his documentary. Dream fulfilled.

Dick Barnett — Educator, Activist, Leader — Leaves a Legacy Larger Than Just Basketball

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