The January 27 Three-Player Package Is Verified
Basketball-Reference's New York Nets, Virginia Squires and ABA league transaction ledgers all record the same January 27, 1976 exchange: New York sent Swen Nater and Billy Schaeffer to Virginia for Jim Eakins. This review also corrects the legacy Bill Schaeffer label to the Basketball-Reference identity Billy Schaeffer. There is no cash or draft component in the authoritative ledger, so the evaluation can focus directly on what the three players produced after the trade.
Eakins Became a Championship Rotation Center for the Nets
Eakins played 34 regular-season games for New York after the trade, averaging 6.2 points, 3.5 rebounds and 0.6 blocks in 13.6 minutes while shooting 50.3 percent from the field. His role expanded in the playoffs. He appeared in all 13 postseason games, averaged 21.6 minutes, 6.8 points and 6.0 rebounds, and was part of the rotation as the Nets defeated San Antonio and Denver to win the final ABA championship. That postseason contribution materially changes the hindsight value of the deal.
Virginia Received the Best Regular-Season Player in Nater
Swen Nater was clearly the strongest regular-season performer in the package after the trade. He played 33 games for Virginia and averaged 11.3 points, 9.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 23.5 minutes while shooting 49.8 percent. Nater had already been a major rebounder in the ABA, and his Squires production confirms that he remained a starting-caliber interior player. If the trade were judged only by regular-season box-score output, Virginia would have the stronger case.
Schaeffer Added Another 31 Games for the Squires
Billy Schaeffer also contributed immediately, playing 31 games for Virginia at 6.6 points and 2.9 rebounds in 16.7 minutes. His role was smaller than Nater's, but the two outgoing Nets combined for 64 Squires appearances after the deal. That is substantial short-term volume and prevents the transaction from being graded as a New York landslide. Virginia received two usable players, not one star plus a throw-in who never appeared.
The Championship Context Breaks the Near Tie
New York gave up the better regular-season package, but Eakins filled a role that mattered during the most important games of the season. He played every playoff game and increased his rebounding from 3.5 per game in the regular season to 6.0 in the postseason. The Nets did not acquire a star, yet they acquired a center who could handle more than twenty playoff minutes per night on the team that won the ABA title. That kind of direct postseason utility is a legitimate realized outcome and should not be erased by Nater's superior regular-season averages.
Final Verdict
Slight Nets Edge, B+/B. New York receives a B+ because Eakins supplied 34 regular-season games and then became a 21.6-minute postseason rotation center across all 13 games of the 1976 ABA championship run. Virginia receives a B because Nater was the best regular-season player in the transaction and Schaeffer added useful depth, combining for 64 Squires appearances. The margin is intentionally narrow: the Squires won the regular-season production comparison, while the Nets received the more consequential postseason result. Confidence is high on the package and direct 1975-76 outcomes. The verdict reflects only verified transaction terms and realized team value.