1972–73 Buffalo Braves season

1972–73 Buffalo Braves season
Head coachJack Ramsay
ArenaBuffalo Memorial Auditorium
Maple Leaf Gardens
Results
Record21–61 (.256)
PlaceDivision: 3rd (Atlantic)
Conference: 7th (Eastern)
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Local media
TelevisionWBEN-TV
RadioWBEN
< 1971–72 1973–74 >

The 1972–73 Buffalo Braves season was the 3rd season of the Buffalo Braves of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Despite finishing with a worse record than their previous 2 seasons, their 21–61 record was good enough for 3rd place. The Braves showed improvement under new Coach Jack Ramsay. Rookie center Bob McAdoo provided the silver lining by winning the Rookie of the Year Award with 18.0 points per game and 9.1 rebounds per game.[1]

During the fifth game of the season versus the Boston Celtics on October 20, 1972, the team set an NBA record which still stands for most points in a single quarter with 58, and still managed to lose 126–118.

Draft picks

Main article: 1972 NBA draft
Round Pick Player Position Nationality College
1 2 Bob McAdoo Forward  United States North Carolina
2 15 Harold Fox Guard  United States Jacksonville
3 32 Bob Morse Forward  United States Penn
4 49 George Bryant Guard  United States Eastern Kentucky
5 65 Arnie Berman Forward  United States Brown
6 82 Ed Czernota Center  United States Sacred Heart (Connecticut)
7 99 Greg Kohls Guard  United States Syracuse
8 115 Andy Denny Guard  United States South Alabama
9 131 John Collins Center  United States SUNY Brockport
11 158 Jim Prokell Guard  United States Edinboro (Pennsylvania)
12 167 Frank Dewitt Forward  United States Virginia
13 176 Kim Huband Forward  United States North Carolina
14 182 Greg Corson Center  United States North Carolina
15 189 Paul Hoffman Guard  United States St. Bonaventure
16 194 Norman Bounds Forward  United States SUNY Brockport

Roster

Buffalo Braves 1972-73 roster
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Ht. Wt. From
G 7 Fox, Harold 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Jacksonville
G 20 Garrett, Dick 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Southern Illinois
G 42 Hazzard, Walt 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) UCLA
F 27 Hewitt, Bill 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 210 lb (95 kg) USC
G 32 Hilton, Fred 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Grambling State
F 45 Hummer, John 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Princeton
F 44 Kauffman, Bob 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Guilford
G 5 Komives, Howard 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Bowling Green
F 11 McAdoo, Bob 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 210 lb (95 kg) North Carolina
C 3 Smith, Elmore 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Kentucky State
G 9 Smith, Randy 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Buffalo State
C 35 Warner, Cornell 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 220 lb (100 kg) Jackson State
G 13 Wohl, Dave 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Penn
Head coach
Legend
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (S) Suspended
  • Injured Injured

Roster Notes

  • Center Cornell Warner and guard Walt Hazzard played in only 4 games and 9 games respectively before being waived in November.
  • Guard Harold Fox played in only 10 games before being waived in December.
  • Guard Dave Wohl came back to the franchise, now known as the Los Angeles Clippers, as an assistant coach from 1993 to 1994 and as its general manager from 2014 to 2017.

Regular season

Season standings

Atlantic Division
 W L PCT GB Home Road Neutral Div
y-Boston Celtics 68 14 .829 – 33–6 32–8 3–0 18–4
x-New York Knicks 57 25 .695 11 35–6 21–18 1–1 16–6
Buffalo Braves 21 61 .256 47 14–27 6–31 1–3 8–14
Philadelphia 76ers 9 73 .110 59 5–26 2–36 2–11 2–20
#
Eastern Conference
Team W L PCT
1 z-Boston Celtics 68 14 .829
2 x-New York Knicks 57 25 .695
3 y-Baltimore Bullets 52 30 .634
4 x-Atlanta Hawks 46 36 .561
5 Houston Rockets 33 49 .402
6 Cleveland Cavaliers 32 50 .390
7 Buffalo Braves 21 61 .256
8 Philadelphia 76ers 9 73 .110

Record vs. opponents

1972-73 NBA Records
Team ATL BAL BOS BUF CHI CLE DET GSW HOU KCO LAL MIL NYK PHI PHO POR SEA
Atlanta — 3–4 1–5 5–1 2–2 3–4 2–2 1–3 4–4 2–2 3–1 1–3 3–3 6–0 3–1 4–0 3–1
Baltimore 4–3 — 1–5 5–1 0–4 8–0 2–2 3–1 5–2 3–1 1–3 2–2 3–3 5–1 2–2 4–0 4–0
Boston 5–1 5–1 — 7–0 3–1 5–1 3–1 3–1 5–1 3–1 4–0 2–2 4–4 7–0 4–0 4–0 4–0
Buffalo 1–5 1–5 0–7 — 2–2 1–5 1–3 0–4 1–5 1–3 0–4 0–4 1–6 7–1 1–3 2–2 2–2
Chicago 2–2 4–0 1–3 2–2 — 3–1 3–4 3–3 4–0 5–2 1–5 2–4 3–1 4–0 4–2 5–1 5–1
Cleveland 4–3 0–8 1–5 5–1 1–3 — 1–3 1–3 4–3 2–2 1–3 1–3 0–6 6–0 1–3 1–3 3–1
Detroit 2–2 2–2 1–3 3–1 4–3 3–1 — 2–4 1–3 3–3 1–5 2–5 1–3 3–1 4–2 6–0 2–4
Golden State 3–1 1–3 1–3 4–0 3–3 3–1 4–2 — 3–1 4–2 3–4 1–5 2–2 4–0 2–4 5–1 4–3
Houston 4–4 2–5 1–5 5–1 0–4 3–4 3–1 1–3 — 0–4 1–3 1–3 1–5 5–1 2–2 2–2 2–2
Kansas City-Omaha 2–2 1–3 1–3 3–1 2–5 2–2 3–3 2–4 4–0 — 1–5 1–6 0–4 3–1 3–3 4–2 4–2
Los Angeles 1–3 3–1 0–4 4–0 5–1 3–1 5–1 4–3 3–1 5–1 — 3–3 2–2 4–0 6–1 6–0 6–0
Milwaukee 3–1 2–2 2–2 4–0 4–2 3–1 5–2 5–1 3–1 6–1 3–3 — 2–2 3–1 5–1 5–1 5–1
New York 3–3 3–3 4–4 6–1 1–3 6–0 3–1 2–2 5–1 4–0 2–2 2–2 — 6–1 3–1 3–1 4–0
Philadelphia 0–6 1–5 0–7 1–7 0–4 0–6 1–3 0–4 1–5 1–3 0–4 1–3 1–6 — 0–4 1–3 1–3
Phoenix 1–3 2–2 0–4 3–1 2–4 3–1 2–4 4–2 2–2 3–3 1–6 1–5 1–3 4–0 — 5–2 4–2
Portland 0–4 0–4 0–4 2–2 1–5 3–1 0–6 1–5 2–2 2–4 0–6 1–5 1–3 3–1 2–5 — 3–4
Seattle 1–3 0–4 0–4 2–2 1–5 1–3 4–2 3–4 2–2 2–4 0–6 1–5 0–4 3–1 2–4 4–3 —

Game log

1972–73 Game log
# Date Opponent Score High points Record
1 October 10 Atlanta 120–109 Dick Garrett (25) 0–1
2 October 13 @ Philadelphia 104–101 Fred Hilton (22) 1–1
3 October 14 Houston 121–113 Fred Hilton (36) 1–2
4 October 17 Philadelphia 114–122 Bob Kauffman (24) 2–2
5 October 20 @ Boston 118–126 Randy Smith (29) 2–3
6 October 21 Milwaukee 91–63 John Hummer (12) 2–4
7 October 24 Boston 105–97 Bob Kauffman (24) 2–5
8 October 25 @ Milwaukee 92–109 Elmore Smith (28) 2–6
9 October 28 Kansas City–Omaha 113–102 Bob Kauffman (17) 2–7
10 November 3 @ Cleveland 97–124 Bob Kauffman (19) 2–8
11 November 4 Chicago 99–101 Bob Kauffman (28) 3–8
12 November 7 Golden State 105–91 Bob McAdoo (21) 3–9
13 November 8 Baltimore 94–126 Bob McAdoo (18) 3–10
14 November 10 Boston 106–104 Bob Kauffman (25) 3–11
15 November 14 @ Kansas City–Omaha 100–106 Bob Kauffman (34) 3–12
16 November 17 @ Los Angeles 100–103 Bob Kauffman (28) 3–13
17 November 18 @ Golden State 92–120 Bob Kauffman (26) 3–14
18 November 19 @ Seattle 84–107 Randy Smith (19) 3–15
19 November 21 Baltimore 124–88 Dick Garrett (16) 3–16
20 November 24 N Philadelphia 96–105 Dick Garrett (26) 4–16
21 November 25 Cleveland 103–90 Dick Garrett (19) 4–17
22 November 28 Philadelphia 101–94 Elmore Smith (32) 4–18
23 November 30 @ Detroit 116–127 Elmore Smith (29) 4–19
24 December 1 Seattle 90–93 Randy Smith (27) 5–19
25 December 2 @ New York 94–119 Elmore Smith (28) 5–20
26 December 5 Phoenix 97–108 Bob Kauffman (27) 6–20
27 December 8 New York 89–91 Dick Garrett (21) 7–20
28 December 9 @ Chicago 94–105 Elmore Smith (29) 7–21
29 December 12 Houston 94–95 Elmore Smith (25) 8–21
30 December 15 Golden State 129–95 Bob Kauffman (20) 8–22
31 December 16 @ Philadelphia 126–103 Bob Kauffman (32) 9–22
32 December 19 Los Angeles 126–100 Elmore Smith (35) 9–23
33 December 22 Atlanta 110–109 Elmore Smith (21) 9–24
34 December 26 Baltimore 121–104 Elmore Smith (25) 9–25
35 December 28 @ New York 86–107 Bob McAdoo (23) 9–26
36 December 29 @ Baltimore 118–109 Randy Smith (33) 10–26
37 December 30 @ Atlanta 110–120 Elmore Smith (24) 10–27
38 January 2 Philadelphia 110–114 Bob McAdoo (30) 11–27
39 January 5 New York 129–106 Bob McAdoo (26) 11–28
40 January 6 @ Milwaukee 96–110 Randy Smith (21) 11–29
41 January 7 @ Chicago 96–119 Bob McAdoo (26) 11–30
42 January 9 Cleveland 102–106 McAdoo, E. Smith (22) 12–30
43 January 12 Portland 100–120 Bob McAdoo (31) 13–30
44 January 16 Boston 106–102 Randy Smith (27) 13–31
45 January 18 @ Atlanta 127–125 Bob McAdoo (32) 14–31
46 January 19 Detroit 98–108 Elmore Smith (28) 15–31
47 January 21 @ Boston 97–104 Elmore Smith (32) 15–32
48 January 25 @ New York 92–99 Elmore Smith (21) 15–33
49 January 26 Atlanta 118–82 Elmore Smith (22) 15–34
50 January 27 @ Baltimore 87–115 Bob McAdoo (25) 15–35
51 January 28 @ Philadelphia 101–96 Elmore Smith (25) 16–35
52 January 30 Philadelphia 104–105 Elmore Smith (36) 17–35
53 February 2 Milwaukee 114–108 Randy Smith (27) 17–36
54 February 3 @ Atlanta 101–105 Dick Garrett (22) 17–37
55 February 4 N Houston 130–118 Bob McAdoo (31) 17–38
56 February 6 Detroit 107–105 Bob McAdoo (31) 17–39
57 February 9 Baltimore 101–95 Bob McAdoo (33) 17–40
58 February 11 @ Seattle 128–125 Bob McAdoo (39) 18–40
59 February 13 @ Portland 100–120 Elmore Smith (25) 18–41
60 February 14 @ Phoenix 107–124 Bob McAdoo (32) 18–42
61 February 16 New York 102–98 McAdoo, E. Smith (22) 18–43
62 February 18 @ Cleveland 98–122 Bob Kauffman (20) 18–44
63 February 20 Kansas City–Omaha 106–113 Elmore Smith (27) 19–44
64 February 23 Phoenix 125–106 Bob McAdoo (34) 19–45
65 February 24 @ New York 97–125 Bob Kauffman (20) 19–46
66 February 27 Houston 112–105 Elmore Smith (22) 19–47
67 March 2 Seattle 139–120 Bob McAdoo (41) 19–48
68 March 4 @ Boston 113–125 Randy Smith (32) 19–49
69 March 6 Boston 127–112 Bob Kauffman (28) 19–50
70 March 8 Chicago 102–112 Bob McAdoo (28) 20–50
71 March 10 Portland 101–106 Elmore Smith (29) 21–50
72 March 13 Los Angeles 121–112 Bob Kauffman (28) 21–51
73 March 16 @ Detroit 100–121 Bob McAdoo (28) 21–52
74 March 17 Cleveland 114–97 Elmore Smith (21) 21–53
75 March 18 @ Cleveland 101–102 Bob Kauffman (21) 21–54
76 March 20 @ Kansas City–Omaha 115–119 Elmore Smith (33) 21–55
77 March 21 @ Phoenix 124–134 (OT) Randy Smith (21) 21–56
78 March 23 @ Los Angeles 101–121 John Hummer (20) 21–57
79 March 24 @ Golden State 101–106 Bob McAdoo (29) 21–58
80 March 25 @ Portland 107–113 (OT) Bob McAdoo (39) 21–59
81 March 27 N Houston 121–111 Bob McAdoo (39) 21–60
82 March 28 N Houston 138–122 Bob McAdoo (45) 21–61

Player statistics

Note: GP= Games Played; MPG = Minutes per game; FG% = Field goal percentage; FT% = Free throw percentage; RPG = Rebounds per game; APG = Assists per game; PPG = Points per game

Player GP MPG FG% FT% RPG APG PPG
Bob Kauffman 77 39.6 .505 .780 11.1 5.1 17.5
Elmore Smith 76 37.2 .482 .558 12.4 3.9 18.3
Bob McAdoo 80 32.0 .452 .774 9.1 3.2 18.0
Randy Smith 82 31.7 .443 .727 4.8 5.1 14.8
Dave Wohl 56 27.5 .456 .790 1.6 4.6 8.8
John Hummer 66 23.4 .444 .561 4.9 2.1 8.0
Dick Garrett 78 23.1 .419 .873 2.7 2.8 10.0
Howard Komives 67 21.9 .380 .867 1.8 3.6 6.1
Bill Hewitt 73 18.2 .418 .554 5.0 1.5 4.7
Walt Hazzard 9 14.9 .417 .500 1.1 1.9 5.9
Fred Hilton 59 12.4 .387 .774 1.7 1.3 7.2
Cornell Warner 4 11.8 .471 .500 3.8 1.5 4.3
Harold Fox 10 8.4 .375 .875 0.8 1.0 3.1

[2]

Awards and honors

  • Bob Kauffman, NBA All-Star
  • Bob McAdoo, NBA Rookie of the Year

Transactions

The Braves were involved in the following transactions during the 1972–73 season.

Coaching Change

Offseason
Outgoing coach Date Removed 1971–72 Record Incoming coach
Johnny McCarthy Fired, March 27, 1972 22–60 Jack Ramsay

Trades

September 29, 1972 To Buffalo Braves
 To Detroit Pistons
  • 1973 2nd round draft pick

Free agents

References

  1. ^ Buffalo Braves (1970–1978)
  2. ^ "1972-73 Buffalo Braves Roster and Stats".