1976–77 Buffalo Braves season

1976–77 Buffalo Braves season
Head coach	Tates Locke
Arena	Buffalo Memorial Auditorium
Results
Record	30–52 (.366)
Place	Division: 4th (Atlantic) Conference: 10th (Eastern)
Playoff finish	DNQ
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
Television	MSG Network, WBEN
Radio	WBEN

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]

Offseason

ABA Dispersal Draft

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

Buffalo Braves 1976–77 roster

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Nat.	Name	Ht.	Wt.
4.0 !F	35	USA !	Abdul-Aziz, Zaid	7000205740000000000♠6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Iowa State
4.0 !F	10	USA !	Adams, Don	7000200659999999999♠6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Northwestern
1.5 !G	14	USA !	Averitt, Bird	7000187960000000000♠6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	Pepperdine
1.5 !G	44	USA !	Dantley, Adrian	7000195580000000000♠6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Notre Dame
1.5 !G	15	USA !	DiGregorio, Ernie	7000182880000000000♠6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Providence
1.5 !G	5	USA !	Foster, Fred	7000195580000000000♠6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Miami (OH)
4.0 !F	22	USA !	Gerard, Gus	7000203200000000000♠6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Virginia
6.0 !C	40	USA !	Gianelli, John	7000208279999999999♠6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Pacific
6.0 !C	52	USA !	Johnson, George	7000210820000000000♠6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Dillard University
6.0 !C	22	USA !	Malone, Moses	7000208279999999999♠6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)	255 lb (116 kg)	Petersburg H.S.
4.0 !F	22	USA !	Mayes, Clyde	7000205740000000000♠6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Furman University
6.0 !C	11	USA !	McAdoo, Bob	7000205740000000000♠6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	North Carolina
6.0 !C	52	USA !	McMillen, Tom	7000210820000000000♠6 ft 11 in (2.11 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Maryland
1.5 !G	21	USA !	Neumann, John	7000198120000000000♠6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	Mississippi
1.5 !G	25	USA !	Price, Jim	7000190500000000000♠6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Louisville
4.0 !F	34	USA !	Shumate, John	7000205740000000000♠6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	Notre Dame
1.5 !G	9	USA !	Smith, Randy	7000190500000000000♠6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Buffalo State
1.5 !G	12	USA !	Terry, Claude	7000195580000000000♠6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	Stanford
1.5 !G	11	USA !	Williams, Chuck	7000190500000000000♠6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Colorado

Head coach

Tates Locke

Legend

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

Regular season

Season standings

**Atlantic Division**
Team	W	L	PCT.	GB
Philadelphia 76ers	50	32	.610	–
Boston Celtics	44	38	.537	6
New York Knicks	40	42	.488	10
Buffalo Braves	30	52	.366	20
New York Nets	22	60	.268	28

^[2]

Record vs. opponents

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

source

Player stats

Note: GP= Games played; REB= Rebounds; AST= Assists; STL = Steals; BLK = Blocks; PTS = Points; AVG = Average

Player	GP	REB	AST	STL	BLK	PTS	AVG

Awards and honors

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

All-Star

Bob McAdoo selected as a starting forward for the Eastern Conference All-Stars. This is his fourth straight All-Star Game selection.

References

1976–77 NBA season by team

Eastern

Atlantic	Boston Buffalo N.Y. Knicks N.Y. Nets Philadelphia

Central	Atlanta Cleveland Houston New Orleans San Antonio Washington

Western

Midwest	Chicago Denver Detroit Indiana Kansas City Milwaukee

Pacific	Golden State Los Angeles Phoenix Portland Seattle

Buffalo Braves seasons

1970s

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