Forming the Team
1969
5 Nov The NBA announces that it plans to expand by two teams for the 1970-71 season with an expansion committee to meet on
8 Dec and possible cities being Buffalo, Cleveland, Kansas City, Memphis, Minneapolis and Portland
20 Jan The NBA votes 12-2 for expansion in 1970 with Buffalo, Cleveland, Houston and Portland to receive franchises at a cost of $3.5 million
6 Feb Philip J. Ryan and Peter Crotty are awarded an expansion franchise to play in Buffalo at the cost of $3.7 million
Eddie Donovan is named General Manager
23 Mar Trade a 1970 first-round draft choice (9-George Johnson) to Baltimore for Mike Davis and a 1970 first-round draft choice (15-John Hummer)
23 Mar Draft John Hummer
31 Mar Dolph Schayes is named coach
Prior to their first game, the team is purchased by a group headed by Paul L. Snyder
Play in the Memorial Auditorium (capacity 17,300)
11 May Select Emmette Bryant, Mike Davis, Dick Garrett, Herm Gilliam, Bailey Howell and Don May in a joint expansion draft with Cleveland and Portland
Trade Howell to Philadelphia for Bob Kauffman and a draft choice
The Early Years
1970 – 71
14 Oct The Braves defeat Cleveland in their first game 107-92 in Buffalo
12 Jan Kauffman plays in the All-Star Game
Do not qualify for the playoffs
1971 – 72
29 Mar Draft Elmore Smith, Fred Hilton, Spencer Haywood (who had signed as an undergraduate with Seattle) and Randy Smith
26 Jul Trade May and Gilliam to Atlanta for Walt Hazzard and Jerry Chambers
Hazzard changes his named to Mahdi Abdul-Rahman
13 Oct After an opening game loss, Schayes is replaced as coach with John McCarthy
18 Jan Kauffman plays in the All-Star Game
Smith is named to the NBA All-Rookie Team
Do not qualify for the playoffs
1972 – 73
27 Mar McCarthy is dismissed as coach
6 Apr Jack Ramsey is named as head coach
10 Apr Draft Bob McAdoo
After McAdoo had signed with Virginia of the ABA, Buffalo purchases his contract for $200,000 and then signs him to a new contract
9 Nov Waive Abdul-Rahman
11 Dec Garrett and Harold Fox are cleared of drug charges brought against them
23 Jan Kauffman plays in the All-Star Game
McAdoo is named NBA Rookie of the Year and to the NBA All-Rookie Team
Do not qualify for the playoffs
The Playoff Years
1973 – 74
24 Apr Draft Ernie DiGregorio and Tim Bassett (who signs with San Diego of the ABA)
Outbid Kentucky and sign DiGregorio to a three-year, $2.3 million contract (with much of it deferred)
Sep Trade Hummer and a draft choice to Chicago for Garfield Heard and the rights to Kevin Kunnert
12 Sep Trade Elmore Smith to Los Angeles for Jim McMillan
1 Jan DiGregorio sets a rookie record with 25 assists in a game
15 Jan McAdoo plays in the All-Star Game and is named Most Valuable Player
1 Feb Trade Kunnert and Dave Wohl to Houston for Jack Marin and Matt Goukas
McAdoo sets a team record with 246 blocked shots for the season
McAdoo leads the league with a .547 field goal percentage and 30.6 PPG
Randy Smith sets a team record with 203 steals for the season
DiGregorio is named NBA Rookie of the Year and to the NBA All-Rookie Team and leads the league with a .902 FT%
Donovan is named NBA Executive of the Year
McAdoo is named All-NBA Second Team
Lose in the playoffs to Boston 4 games to 2
1974 – 75
20 May Kauffman is selected by New Orleans in the expansion draft
29 May Draft Tom McMillen and Kim Hughes (who remains in school)
1 Nov DiGregorio totals a team-record 25 assists against Portland
3 Nov to 23Nov74 Buffalo wins a team-record eleven straight games
14 Jan McAdoo plays in the All-Star Game
22 Feb McAdoo scores a team-record 52 points against Boston
20 Mar Buffalo files tampering charges against New York after they hire Donovan as their General Manager
22 Mar McAdoo scores 51 points against Houston
McMillan is limited to 62 games due to illness, Heard is limited to 67 games due to an ankle injury and DiGregorio is limited to 31 games due to a knee injury
McAdoo leads the league in scoring with a team record 2,831 points and 34.5 PPG
18 Apr McAdoo scores 50 points in a playoff game against Washington
2 Apr McAdoo is named NBA Most Valuable Player and All-NBA First Team
Lose in the playoffs to Washington 4 games to 3
1975 – 76
Bob McKinnon is named General Manager
29 May Trade a 1975 first-round draft choice (16-Ricky Sobers) to Phoenix for a 1976 first-round draft choice (6-Adrian Dantley)
30 Jun Trade a 1976 first-round draft choice (13-Mitch Kupchak) to Washington for Dick Gibbs and cash
20 Nov McAdoo scores 50 points against Cleveland
27 Nov Trade Marin to Chicago for a 1977 first-round draft choice (13-Tate Armstrong)
1 Feb Trade Heard and a draft choice to Phoenix for John Shumate
3 Feb McAdoo and Smith play in the All-Star Game
17 Mar McAdoo ties his team record with 52 points against Seattle
McAdoo leads the league in scoring with 31.1 PPG
Shumate is named to the NBA All-Rookie Team
Smith is named All-NBA Second Team
Defeat Philadelphia in the playoffs 2 games to 1 before losing to Boston 4 games to 2
The Final Years
1976-77
3 May Ramsay resigns as head coach
6 May Tates Locke is named coach
8 Jun Draft Adrian Dantley and George Johnson
14 Jun Snyder gives Irving Cowan the option of buying 100% of the team for $6.1 million with Cowan intending to move the team to a new 15,000 arena in Hollywood, Florida
15 Jun Cowan’s plan to purchase majority control of the team and move it to Hollywood, Florida ends when the city of Buffalo is granted an injunction halting the move
16 Jun Trade Charles and Gibbs to Atlanta for Tom Van Arsdale
10 Sep Sell McMillan to New York
18 Oct trade a 1978 first-round draft choice (3-Rick Robey) to Portland for Moses Malone
24 Oct Trade Malone to Houston for a 1977 first-round draft choice (18-Wesley Cox) and a 1978 first-round draft choice (4-Micheal Ray Richardson)
2 Nov Trade a 1977 first-round draft choice (13-Tate Armstrong) to Milwaukee for Jim Price
9 Dec Trade McAdoo and McMillen to New York for John Gianelli and cash
13 Dec Trade Price to Denver for Chuck Williams and Gus Gerard
18 Jan Trade a 1977 first-round draft choice ((18-Wesley Cox) to Golden State for George Johnson
25 Jan Locke is relieved of duty as coach after a 16-30 start to the season with Bob MacKinnon named interim coach
16 Feb Joe Mullaney is named interim coach
DiGregorio sets a team record with a .945 free throw percentage for the season, leading the league
John Y. Brown, Jr. purchases minority interest in the team
Dantley is named NBA Rookie of the Year and to the NBA All-Rookie Team
Do not qualify for the playoffs
1977 – 1978
7 Jun Trade a 1977 first-round draft (3-Marques Johnson) choice to Milwaukee for Swen Nater and a 1977 first-round draft choice (13-Tate Armstrong)
Brown purchases controlling interest in the team
5 Aug Lowell “Cotton” Fitzsimmons is named head coach
1 Sep Trade Dantley and Mike Bantom to Indiana for Billy Knight
1 Sep Trade Johnson and 1978 and 1979 first-round draft choices (4-Micheal Ray Richardson & 11-Cliff Robinson) to New Jersey for Nate Archibald
2 Sep Trade Gianelli and cash to Milwaukee for a 1979 first round pick (10-Roy Hamilton)
7 Sep Trade DiGregorio to Los Angeles
Norm Sonju is named General Manager
23 Nov Trade Shumate, Gerard and a draft choice to Detroit for Marvin Barnes and draft choices
Smith plays in the All-Star Game
Knight is limited to 53 games due to a knee injury and Archibald misses the entire season with an achilles tendon injury
8 Apr Play their final home game in Buffalo losing to New York 118-107
Do not qualify for the playoffs
Brown investigates the possibility of moving the team to Dallas as the Dallas Express
7 Jun Brown and Mangurian exchange the franchise with Irving H. Levin and Harold Lipton for the Boston franchise, Levin and Lipton then move the franchise to San Diego
Buffalo Braves. Net 