1976–77 Buffalo Braves season

The 1976–77 NBA season was the Braves seventh season in the NBA. The Braves were purchased by John Y. Brown, Jr., the former owner of the Kentucky Colonels in the now defunct American Basketball Association for $6.2 million.[1] As part of an agreement with the Braves' former owner, Paul Snyder, Brown would give Snyder money received in player deals to reduce the purchase price.[1] The sell-off began shortly after the season, as the Braves sold newly acquired Moses Malone. Malone was acquired in a trade with the Portland Trail Blazers after the ABA dispersal draft. Malone was now off to the Houston Rockets. The selling of players continued into the season as Bob McAdoo was sold to the New York Knicks.[1] While the deals helped Brown pay virtually nothing for the franchise, it turned a promising franchise into a rebuilding one. Attendance fell off as the Braves finished in 4th place with a 30–52 record. The only spotlight was rookie Adrian Dantley, who captured Rookie of the Year honors with 20.3 points per game. However Dantley himself was traded following the season to the Indiana Pacers for Billy Knight.[1]

1976–77 Buffalo Braves season
Head coachTates Locke
ArenaBuffalo Memorial Auditorium
Results
Record30–52 (.366)
PlaceDivision: 4th (Atlantic)
Conference: 10th (Eastern)
Playoff finishDid not qualify

Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionWBEN-TV
RadioWBEN
< 1975–76 1977–78 >

Offseason edit

Coach Ramsay had been hired in 1972 to a three-year contract. He served the 1975–76 season on a one-year extension. His contract was not renewed. Ramsay had guided the Braves to the playoffs three years in a row after enduring a 21–61 season, accumulating a 158–170 overall record. Local reports noted a personality conflict with owner Snyder.[2][3] The Braves promoted assistant coach Tates Locke and signed him to a two-year contract.[4][5][6]

Snyder threatened to sell the Braves if they did not sell 5,000 season tickets by June 12, 1976. However the season ticket drive by the Chamber of Commerce and other civic groups only resulted in 2,552 sales by the deadline date.[7] In June 1976, Diplomat Hotel owner Irving Cowan obtained an option to purchase the Braves for $6.1 million, and planned to bring them to South Florida and the Hollywood Sportatorium.[8] Pledges of more than 8,000 season tickets were received in Florida.[9] On June 15, Snyder announced the planned sale.[10][11]The Wall Street Journal estimated the sale price to be in the $7–8 million range.[12] However, the next day the city of Buffalo sued the Braves for breach of contract and sought a restraining order preventing the move. The suit was filed in New York Supreme Court for seeking $10 million from the Braves and the NBA for breaking a promise to sign a new 15-year lease. Another suit was filed as an anti-trust case in United States district court against the rest of the NBA seeking $48 million in damages in the event of a move. The anti-trust case alleged that the move was an attempt to eliminate competition against a future Toronto NBA franchise and to discourage expansion of the American Basketball Association to southern Florida. The damages arose as treble damages related to a March 1 promise to sign a lease.[10] Although Cowan claimed the move would still take place, the effort collapsed under the weight of the lawsuit and the Braves ended up signing a new lease with the city of Buffalo.[13][14] In July, the Braves signed a new lease with the city for the Memorial Auditorium with the understanding that there was an ongoing effort to sell the team to local interests.[15] The signing of the lease settled the lawsuits.[16]

NBA draft edit

Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
1 6 Adrian Dantley Forward   United States Notre Dame
3 48 Gary Brewster Forward   United States UTEP
6 100 Danny Odums Guard   United States Fairfield
7 118 Frank Jones Guard   United States Tennessee Tech
8 136 Mark McAndrew Guard   United States Providence College
9 153 Bob Rozyczko Forward   United States St. Bonaventure
10 169 Tim Stokes Guard   United States Canisius College

ABA Dispersal Draft edit

The American Basketball Association joined the NBA with the ABA–NBA merger in 1976. Of the teams remaining in the ABA, four joined the NBA. The remaining two ABA teams that did not join the NBA, the Kentucky Colonels and the Spirits of St. Louis, had their players assigned to a dispersal draft for draft purposes.

Pick Player Nationality NBA Team ABA Team Purchase Price
7 Bird Averitt (PG)   United States Buffalo Braves Kentucky Colonels $125,000

Roster edit

Buffalo Braves 1976–77 roster
Players Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Ht. Wt. From
F 35   Abdul-Aziz, Zaid 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Iowa State
F 10   Adams, Don 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Northwestern
G 14   Averitt, Bird 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Pepperdine
G 44   Dantley, Adrian 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Notre Dame
G 15   DiGregorio, Ernie 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Providence
G 5   Foster, Fred 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Miami (OH)
F 22   Gerard, Gus 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Virginia
C 40   Gianelli, John 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Pacific
C 52   Johnson, George 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Dillard
C 22   Malone, Moses 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 255 lb (116 kg) Petersburg H.S.
F 22   Mayes, Clyde 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Furman
C 11   McAdoo, Bob 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) North Carolina
C 52   McMillen, Tom 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Maryland
G 21   Neumann, John 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Mississippi
G 25   Price, Jim 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Louisville
F 34   Shumate, John 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Notre Dame
G 9   Smith, Randy 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Buffalo State
G 12   Terry, Claude 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Stanford
G 11   Williams, Chuck 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Colorado
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  •   Injured

Roster Notes edit

Regular season edit

Season standings edit

W L PCT GB Home Road Div
y-Philadelphia 76ers 50 32 .610 32–9 18–23 11–5
x-Boston Celtics 44 38 .537 6 28–13 16–25 9–7
New York Knicks 40 42 .488 10 26–15 14–27 8–8
Buffalo Braves 30 52 .366 20 23–18 7–34 6–10
New York Nets 22 60 .268 28 10–31 12–29 6–10
#
Team W L PCT GB
1 z-Philadelphia 76ers 50 32 .610
2 y-Houston Rockets 49 33 .598 1
3 x-Washington Bullets 48 34 .585 2
4 x-Boston Celtics 44 38 .537 6
5 x-San Antonio Spurs 44 38 .537 6
6 x-Cleveland Cavaliers 43 39 .524 7
7 New York Knicks 40 42 .488 10
8 New Orleans Jazz 35 47 .427 15
9 Atlanta Hawks 31 51 .378 19
10 Buffalo Braves 30 52 .366 20
11 New York Nets 22 60 .268 28

Record vs. opponents edit

1976–77 NBA Records
Team ATL BOS BUF CHI CLE DEN DET GSW HOU IND KCK LAL MIL NOJ NYK NYN PHI PHO POR SAS SEA WAS
Atlanta 0–4 4–0 2–2 2–2 2–2 0–4 0–4 1–3 0–4 1–2 2–2 2–2 1–3 1–3 3–1 1–3 0–4 3–1 4–0 1–2 1–3
Boston 4–0 3–1 2–2 1–3 3–1 2–2 1–3 2–2 1–2 3–1 2–1 3–1 2–2 2–2 3–1 1–3 2–2 1–3 4–0 2–2 0–4
Buffalo 0–4 1–3 1–3 2–2 2–2 3–1 0–3 1–3 1–3 0–3 1–3 3–1 3–1 1–3 2–2 2–2 3–1 1–3 0–4 3–1 0–4
Chicago 2–2 2–2 3–1 3–1 1–3 2–2 2–2 1–3 2–2 2–2 3–1 3–1 4–0 2–2 2–1 2–2 2–2 0–4 3–1 2–2 1–2
Cleveland 2–2 3–1 2–2 1–3 2–2 1–3 2–2 1–3 2–1 3–1 2–2 4–0 2–2 2–2 3–1 1–3 2–1 2–2 2–2 3–1 1–3
Denver 2–2 1–3 2–2 3–1 2–2 3–1 2–2 3–0 3–1 3–1 2–2 3–1 3–1 2–2 3–1 1–3 3–1 2–2 1–2 4–0 2–2
Detroit 4–0 2–2 1–3 2–2 3–1 1–3 3–1 2–2 2–2 4–0 1–3 3–1 3–1 1–2 3–1 2–2 2–2 2–2 1–2 1–3 1–3
Golden State 4–0 3–1 3–0 2–2 2–2 2–2 1–3 2–1 4–0 1–3 2–2 1–3 1–3 1–3 3–1 3–1 4–0 1–3 2–2 1–3 3–1
Houston 3–1 2–2 3–1 3–1 3–1 0–3 2–2 1–2 4–0 2–2 2–2 3–1 2–2 2–2 2–2 1–3 3–1 3–1 2–2 3–1 3–1
Indiana 4–0 2–1 3–1 2–2 1–2 1–3 2–2 0–4 0–4 2–2 1–3 2–2 2–2 2–2 4–0 2–2 2–2 0–4 2–2 2–2 0–4
Kansas City 2–1 1–3 3–0 2–2 1–3 1–3 0–4 3–1 2–2 2–2 1–3 2–2 2–2 4–0 4–0 1–3 3–1 2–2 1–3 1–3 2–2
Los Angeles 2–2 1–2 3–1 1–3 2–2 2–2 3–1 2–2 2–2 3–1 3–1 3–1 3–0 1–3 4–0 2–2 3–1 3–1 3–1 3–1 4–0
Milwaukee 2–2 1–3 1–3 1–3 0–4 1–3 1–3 3–1 1–3 2–2 2–2 1–3 1–2 1–3 3–1 1–2 1–3 2–2 3–1 1–3 1–3
New Orleans 3–1 2–2 1–3 0–4 2–2 1–3 1–3 3–1 2–2 2–2 2–2 0–3 2–1 3–1 2–2 0–4 3–1 2–2 1–3 1–3 2–2
N.Y. Knicks 3–1 2–2 3–1 2–2 2–2 2–2 2–1 3–1 2–2 2–2 0–4 3–1 3–1 1–3 2–2 1–3 2–2 1–3 1–3 1–2 2–2
N.Y. Nets 1–3 1–3 2–2 1–2 1–3 1–3 1–3 1–3 2–2 0–4 0–4 0–4 1–3 2–2 2–2 1–3 2–2 0–3 1–3 1–3 1–3
Philadelphia 3–1 3–1 2–2 2–2 3–1 3–1 2–2 1–3 3–1 2–2 3–1 2–2 2–1 4–0 3–1 3–1 1–2 2–2 1–3 2–2 3–1
Phoenix 4–0 2–2 1–3 2–2 1–2 1–3 2–2 0–4 1–3 2–2 1–3 1–3 3–1 1–3 2–2 2–2 2–1 1–3 1–3 3–1 1–3
Portland 1–3 3–1 3–1 4–0 2–2 2–2 2–2 3–1 1–3 4–0 2–2 1–3 2–2 2–2 3–1 3–0 2–2 3–1 2–2 3–1 1–2
San Antonio 0–4 0–4 4–0 1–3 2–2 2–1 2–1 2–2 2–2 2–2 3–1 1–3 1–3 3–1 3–1 3–1 3–1 3–1 2–2 3–1 2–2
Seattle 2–1 2–2 1–3 2–2 1–3 0–4 3–1 3–1 1–3 2–2 3–1 1–3 3–1 3–1 2–1 3–1 2–2 1–3 1–3 1–3 3–1
Washington 3–1 4–0 4–0 2–1 3–1 2–2 3–1 1–3 1–3 4–0 2–2 0–4 3–1 2–2 2–2 3–1 1–3 3–1 2–1 2–2 1–3

Season Schedule edit

source

Player stats edit

Legend
GP Games played MPG Minutes per game FG Field-goals per game FGA Field-goals attempted per Game
FG% Field-goal percentage FT Free-throws per game FTA Free-throws attempted per Game FT% Free-throw percentage
ORPG Offensive rebounds per game DRPG Defensive rebounds per game RPG Rebounds per game APG Assists per game
SPG Steals per game BPG Blocks per game PFPG Personal fouls per game PPG Points per game
Player GP MPG FG FGA FG% FT FTA FT% ORPG DRPG RPG APG SPG BPG PFPG PPG
Bob McAdoo 20 38.4 9.1 20.0 0.455 5.5 7.9 0.696 3.3 9.9 13.2 3.3 0.8 1.7 3.7 23.7
Randy Smith 82 37.7 8.6 18.3 0.467 3.6 4.7 0.762 1.6 3.9 5.6 5.4 2.1 0.1 3.2 20.7
Adrian Dantley 77 36.6 7.1 13.6 0.520 6.2 7.6 0.818 3.3 4.4 7.6 1.9 1.2 0.2 2.8 20.3
John Shumate 74 35.1 5.5 10.9 0.502 4.1 6.1 0.671 2.2 7.3 9.5 2.1 1.2 1.1 2.7 15.1
Ernie DiGregorio 81 28.0 4.5 10.8 0.417 1.7 1.8 0.945 0.6 1.6 2.3 4.7 0.7 0.0 1.9 10.7
George Johnson 39 27.1 3.2 7.2 0.448 1.2 1.7 0.687 3.0 7.3 10.3 2.0 0.6 2.7 3.6 7.6
John Gianelli 57 22.5 3.0 7.0 0.431 1.0 1.4 0.714 1.6 3.6 5.2 1.0 0.4 1.2 2.1 7.0
Don Adams 77 22.2 2.8 6.8 0.411 1.7 2.2 0.746 1.7 3.1 4.8 1.9 1.0 0.2 2.6 7.3
Jim Price 20 16.7 2.2 5.2 0.423 0.9 1.0 0.850 0.3 1.5 1.7 1.9 1.3 0.3 2.6 5.3
Bird Averitt 75 15.1 3.1 8.3 0.378 1.6 2.3 0.716 0.3 0.8 1.0 1.8 0.4 0.1 1.7 7.9
Gus Gerard 41 14.4 2.4 6.0 0.410 1.0 1.5 0.656 1.2 1.6 2.9 1.0 0.6 0.8 2.2 5.9
Tom McMillen 20 13.5 2.3 4.6 0.489 1.3 1.8 0.722 1.5 2.2 3.6 0.8 0.1 0.1 1.5 5.8
Chuck Williams 44 12.6 1.0 2.7 0.368 0.9 1.1 0.792 0.4 1.1 1.5 2.0 0.5 0.1 0.8 2.8
Johnny Neumann 4 12.3 3.8 8.5 0.441 1.3 1.5 0.833 1.3 1.0 2.3 1.0 0.8 0.5 1.8 8.8
Fred Foster 59 11.7 1.7 4.2 0.401 0.5 0.7 0.682 0.6 0.7 1.3 0.8 0.3 0.0 1.6 3.9
Claude Terry 33 9.2 1.5 3.2 0.471 0.5 0.7 0.783 0.1 0.7 0.8 1.0 0.3 0.0 0.8 3.5
Zaid Abdul-Aziz 22 8.9 1.1 3.4 0.338 1.5 2.0 0.767 1.9 2.2 4.1 0.3 0.1 0.4 1.0 3.8
Clyde Mayes 2 3.5 0.0 1.5 .000 1.0 1.5 0.667 0.0 1.5 1.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 1.0
Moses Malone 2 3.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5 0.5 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.5 0.0

Awards and honors edit

  • Ernie DiGregorio, Led NBA, Free Throw Percentage, .945

Transactions edit

The Braves sent Ken Charles and Dick Gibbs and cash to the Atlanta Hawks for Tom Van Arsdale.[17][18] Van Arsdale never played for the Braves who traded him in August to the Phoenix Suns for a 1977 NBA draft 2nd round pick.[19]

The Braves were involved in the following transactions during the 1976–77 season.

Coaching Change edit

Offseason
Outgoing Coach Date Removed 1975-76 Record Incoming Coach
Jack Ramsay Fired, May 3, 1976 46–36 Tates Locke
In-season
Outgoing coach Date Removed 1976-77 Record Incoming coach
Tates Locke Fired, January 25, 1977 16–30 Bob MacKinnon (interim)
Bob MacKinnon (interim) Demoted to assistant, February 16, 1977 3–4 Joe Mullaney (interim)

Trades edit

June 16, 1976 To Buffalo Braves
To Atlanta Hawks
August 5, 1976 To Buffalo Braves
To Milwaukee Bucks
  • 1977 2nd round draft pick
August 25, 1976 To Buffalo Braves
  • 1977 2nd round draft pick
To Phoenix Suns
October 18, 1976 To Buffalo Braves
To Portland Trail Blazers
  • 1978 1st round draft pick
October 24, 1976 To Buffalo Braves
  • 1977 & 1978 1st round draft picks
To Houston Rockets
November 22, 1976 To Buffalo Braves
To Milwaukee Bucks
  • 1977 1st round draft pick
December 9, 1976 To Buffalo Braves
To New York Knickerbockers
December 15, 1976 To Buffalo Braves
To Denver Nuggets
January 8, 1977 To Buffalo Braves
To Golden State Warriors
  • 1977 1st round draft pick

Free agents edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d Buffalo Braves (1970-1978)
  2. ^ "Buffalo Braves Won't Rehire Ramsay as Coach". The Palm Beach Post. May 4, 1976. p. D4. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  3. ^ "People in Sports; Jack Ramsay Is Out, Janet Guthrie Is In". The New York Times. May 4, 1976. p. 52. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  4. ^ "Tates Locke New Coach Of Braves". The New York Times. May 7, 1976. p. 25. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  5. ^ "Assistant Is Coach of Braves". The Milwaukee Journal. May 7, 1976. p. 13, part 2. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  6. ^ "Tates Locke takes new job as Buffalo Braves coach". The Dispatch. May 7, 1976. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  7. ^ "Snyder Criticized on Proposed Move of Buffalo Braves". Palm Beach Post. June 12, 1976. Retrieved August 6, 2010.
  8. ^ Goldpaper, Sam (June 15, 1976). "Braves of N.B.A. Sold; Seek a Shift to Florida". The New York Times. p. 47.
  9. ^ Aronson, Peter (September 29, 1985). "Aging Sportatorium Keeps on Rocking". Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the original on March 15, 2012. Retrieved May 10, 2010.
  10. ^ a b "Buffalo files suit to halt Braves move". Anchorage Daily News. June 16, 1976. Retrieved August 6, 2010.
  11. ^ Goldaper, Sam (June 15, 1976). "Braves of N.B.A. Sold; Seek a Shift to Florida; Braves Sold; Would Shift To Florida". The New York Times. p. 59. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  12. ^ "NBA's Buffalo Braves Bought by Florida Man". The Wall Street Journal. June 15, 1976. Retrieved August 6, 2010.
  13. ^ Altaner, David (September 23, 1988). "Sportatorium Is Scheduled To Be Closed". Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the original on July 25, 2011. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
  14. ^ Seiden, Henry (June 17, 1976). "Cowan: Nothing's blocking shift now". The Miami News. p. 1C. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
  15. ^ "Braves Nix Hollywood, Sign New Lease In Buffalo". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. July 7, 1976. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  16. ^ "Braves remain in Buffalo". Star-News. July 6, 1976. Retrieved August 7, 2010.
  17. ^ "Ken Charles". Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 18, 2010.
  18. ^ "Dick Gibbs". Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on July 6, 2010. Retrieved June 18, 2010.
  19. ^ "Tom Van Arsdale". Basketball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 20, 2010.