New Jersey traded John Williamson and a 1981 second-round pick to Washington on February 4, 1980 for Roger Phegley. Phegley played 28 games for the Nets before New Jersey traded him straight up for Foots Walker, who then played 231 regular-season games for the franchise through 1983-84. Williamson played 39 regular-season games for Washington across parts of two seasons. The No. 44 pick became Steve Lingenfelter, who appeared in seven Bullets games before being waived. New Jersey's Phegley-to-Walker branch produced the clearly stronger realized return.
Basketball-Reference records the February 4, 1980 trade as John Williamson and a 1981 second-round pick from New Jersey to Washington for Roger Phegley. The pick eventually became No. 44 Steve Lingenfelter.
Phegley played 28 games for the Nets after the trade, logging 541 minutes and scoring 327 points. He averaged 11.7 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.1 assists while shooting 48.5 percent. New Jersey did not simply lose him afterward. On September 24, 1980, the Nets traded Phegley straight up to Cleveland for Foots Walker. Because that was a one-for-one transaction, Walker is a direct downstream return from the Phegley branch. Walker then played 41 games for New Jersey in 1980-81, 77 in 1981-82, 79 in 1982-83 and 34 in 1983-84. That is 231 regular-season Nets games, including a 54-start season in 1981-82.
Williamson played 30 games for the Bullets after the trade in 1979-80, averaging 11.6 points in 20.1 minutes. He returned for nine games in 1980-81 before his Washington tenure ended. That gives the Bullets 39 regular-season appearances from the veteran guard. Williamson was still a useful scorer immediately after the trade, but the tenure was brief.
Washington retained the incoming second-round selection and used it at No. 44 in the 1981 draft on Steve Lingenfelter. He did not make the Bullets until 1982-83, when he appeared in seven regular-season games. Washington waived Lingenfelter on December 10, 1982. He later played three games for San Antonio, but those appearances came after Washington had released him and are not part of the Bullets' realized return.
Washington received 39 Williamson games and seven later Lingenfelter games. That is real value, but neither branch became a durable rotation asset for the Bullets. New Jersey received 28 Phegley games and then converted him directly into Walker, who remained with the Nets for four seasons and 231 regular-season games. The straight-swap downstream chain makes the difference decisive.
Nets Win, A-/C+. New Jersey receives an A- for the Phegley production plus the direct Walker conversion that yielded 231 additional games. Washington receives a C+ for 39 Williamson games and seven Lingenfelter appearances, a modest return that never approached the duration of the Nets branch.