Feb., 1970; New York, NY, USA; FILE PHOTO; New York Knicks guard Dick Barnett (12) in action at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Manny Rubio-Imagn Images Manny Rubio-Imagn Images

Knicks Legend's Championship Ring Goes Up for Auction

Originally posted on New York Knicks on SI
By Geoff Magliocchetti | Last updated Jun 18, 2025 4:00 PM ET

New York Knicks fans with an extra five-or-six figures to spend may have a shot at the championship ring long denied to their beloved team later this summer.

Per a report from TMZ, Heritage Auctions is set to open bidding on the championship ring earned and worn by the late Dick Barnett after the 1970 NBA Finals, which produced the first of two New York championship runs. The report states that bidding is set to open in August with an expected price of "over $60,000."

"Given this year’s Knicks playoff run they decided it was time to put it up for auction and we’re thrilled to have the opportunity to present it to the collecting public," a Heritage spokesperson told TMZ. "It belonged to a Knicks legend and Basketball HOFer, and the fact it comes from an era when the recipients of championship rings were very limited, we expect to see a lot of interest in the ring."

Dick Barnett Darryl Norenberg-Imagn Images

Heritage was said to have obtained the ring in a private sale. Barnett earned it when the Knicks took a seven-game championship series from the Los Angeles Lakers. The showdown is best-known for Willis Reed's famous Game 7 entry, which saw him take the floor despite a painful thigh injury.

Barnett, Reed, Walt "Clyde" Frazier, and more stuck around for the Knicks' latter championship in 1973, which saw them dispose of the Lakers once again.

The auction for Barnett's ring comes months after he passed away in his sleep at the age of 88 in April. His successors on the Knicks roster wore a black memorial band on their jerseys throughout their most recent playoff run, one that produced the franchise's first Eastern Conference Finals showings since 2000.

Barnett, who spent the final eight seasons of a 14-year playing career in New York, is one of eight Knicks to have their numbers retired, landing the honor in 1990. A long wait for Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame induction ended last fall, becoming the 10th player from the Knicks' last championship team to earn an invite.

This article first appeared on New York Knicks on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: