1977–78 Buffalo Braves season

The 1977–78 NBA season was the Braves' eighth and final season in the NBA. Entering the season, the Braves were allowed an escape clause in their lease, because season ticket sales did not reach the set goal of 4,500. The Braves suffered another disappointment as Tiny Archibald (whom they acquired from the New Jersey Nets for George Johnson) was lost for the year due to an Achilles tendon injury in the preseason.^[1][2]

The Braves played competitively in November with a respectable .500 record at 10–10. Despite the promising start, the Braves won just nine games over the next three months.^[1] While the Braves were struggling on the court, owner John Y. Brown was brokering a deal to take over the legendary Boston Celtics franchise. Celtics owner Irv Levin wanted to move the historic franchise to California. However, the NBA would not allow him to take the cornerstone franchise out of Boston.^[1]

NBA Lawyer David Stern offered a comprise in which Levin and Brown would swap franchises. The concept was that Levin would take over the Braves and move them to San Diego.^[3] The Braves finished in fourth place in the Atlantic Division with a 27–55 (.329) record, and played their last game on April 9, ironically, in Boston.^[1] Owners voted 21–1 to approve the deal, and the Braves moved from Buffalo to San Diego; the team was renamed the San Diego Clippers for the 1978–79 season.^[1]

The deal also included a seven-player trade in which the Celtics acquired Archibald, Billy Knight, and Marvin Barnes.^[1] The San Diego-bound Braves received Freeman Williams, back-up center Kevin Kunnert, and power forwards Kermit Washington and Sidney Wicks.^[3] The team would not request a draft pick in the deal, allowing the Celtics to retain the draft rights to Larry Bird in 1979.

Round	Pick	Player	Position	Nationality	College
2	24	Larry Johnson	Guard	United States	Kentucky
4	68	Melvin Watkins	Guard	United States	UNC Charlotte
5	90	Mike Hanley	Forward	United States	Niagara University
6	112	Curvan Lewis	Forward	United States	Virginia Union
7	133	Mike Jackson	Guard	United States	Tennessee
8	153	Emery Sammons	Guard	United States	Philadelphia T&S

Buffalo Braves 1977–78 roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Ht. Wt. From G 1 Archibald, Nate  (IN) 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 165 lb (75 kg) UTEP G 15 Averitt, Bird 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Pepperdine F 8 Barnes, Marvin 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Providence G 7 Brokaw, Gary 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Notre Dame F 22 Gerard, Gus (to DET) 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Virginia G 14 Glenn, Mike 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Southern Illinois G 10 Johnson, Larry 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Kentucky F 24 Jones, Wil 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Albany State G 25 Knight, Billy 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Pittsburgh C 45 Lloyd, Scott 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Arizona State G 12 McClain, Ted 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Tennessee State C 44 McDaniels, Jim 7 ft 0 in (2.13 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Western Kentucky F 43 McNeil, Larry 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Marquette C 31 Nater, Swen 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 240 lb (109 kg) UCLA F 40 Owens, Eddie 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) UNLV 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 11 Williams, Chuck 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Colorado F 32 Willoughby, Bill 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Dwight Morrow HS (NJ)	Head coach Cotton Fitzsimmons Legend (DP) Unsigned draft pick (FA) Free agent (S) Suspended Injured

• Randy Smith, 1978 NBA All-Star Game MVP

The Braves were involved in the following transactions during the 1977–78 season.

• Braves on Database Basketball
• Braves on Basketball Reference