The move was approved by the league’s Board of Governors by a 21-1 vote (the lone dissenting team appears lost to history), and the two teams also traded most of their respective rosters to maintain continuity.
The 70s were a weird time for pro basketball, and no team sums that up more than the Buffalo Braves. In this episode of Deep Dives I discuss how the Braves owner dealt the franchise for the right to own the Boston Celtics. Check it out on SoundCloud:https://t.co/3N4KfiaHHV
— Ben Shulman (@benshulman7) July 7, 2020
At the time, Levin considered — but ultimately decided against — demanding the inclusion of an interesting prospect out of Indiana.
“I absolutely could have had Larry Bird if I wanted. No question about it,” Levin said via the New York Time’s Peter May. “But I knew Red was very high on the kid and I felt if I took Bird to San Diego, Red would in some way make sure that he never signed with me. It was too risky. We were starting a new franchise. Of course, had I known then what I know now, I would have taken that risk.”
The Braves decamped from upstate New York that summer, and reinvented themselves as the San Diego Clippers.
Very, very strange — but true!