The Verified November 11 Exchange
Basketball-Reference's Chicago, New Orleans and league transaction ledgers agree on the November 11, 1974 deal: the Bulls sent Rick Adelman to the expansion Jazz for John Block. Dick Motta's Chicago executive record and Bill Bertka's New Orleans record independently preserve the same one-for-one swap. The archive maps the historical New Orleans Jazz to the modern Utah Jazz franchise key, so the source-backed verdict is stored under utah-jazz even though every contemporary record properly identifies New Orleans.
Block Helped a Contender Immediately
John Block had played only four games for New Orleans before the trade, but Chicago gave him a steady frontcourt role. He appeared in 50 regular-season games for the Bulls in 1974-75 and averaged 17.6 minutes, 8.1 points and 4.3 rebounds while shooting 47.3 percent. Chicago won 47 games, finished first in the Midwest Division and reached Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals. Block was not one of the team's stars, but he supplied useful scoring and rebounding depth during a deep playoff season.
Chicago's Return Was Mostly a One-Season Asset
Block's Chicago value was concentrated in that first year. He appeared in only two games for the Bulls in 1975-76, totaling seven minutes, and that season became the end of his NBA career. That does not erase the value of 50 useful appearances for a contender, but it limits the long-term return. There was no later Chicago trade package or draft asset created from Block, so the Bulls' side can be evaluated almost entirely from his direct 1974-75 production.
Adelman Gave New Orleans a Short-Term Backcourt Piece
Rick Adelman played 28 games for the Jazz after the trade and averaged 21.9 minutes, 6.3 points, 2.5 assists and 2.0 rebounds. He was not a long-term building block for an expansion team that was still changing personnel rapidly, but he gave New Orleans a credible veteran guard during the franchise's difficult first season. His direct Jazz production was smaller than Block's Chicago contribution, so the New Orleans side needs its downstream transaction to justify the overall edge.
Adelman Became Part of the Nate Williams Deal
On February 1, 1975, New Orleans traded Adelman and Ollie Johnson to Kansas City-Omaha for Nate Williams. Williams immediately averaged 14.3 points in 35 games for the Jazz, then played 81 games in 1975-76, 79 in 1976-77 and 27 more in 1977-78 before moving on. The Jazz should not receive full credit for Williams as though Adelman alone bought him, because Ollie Johnson was also part of the package. Still, Adelman clearly retained enough transaction value to help New Orleans acquire a player who became a regular scorer across multiple seasons.
Final Verdict
Jazz Win, A-/B+. The modern Utah franchise receives an A- for the historical New Orleans side because Adelman supplied 28 games and then helped form the package that brought back Nate Williams, a productive multi-season Jazz rotation scorer. Chicago receives a B+ because Block gave the Bulls 50 useful regular-season games during a conference-finals season plus two more appearances the next year, but he produced no further downstream asset value. The edge is narrow and depends on giving Adelman partial, not full, credit for the Williams acquisition. Confidence is high on the original trade and direct statistics, and medium-high on the allocation of downstream value because Ollie Johnson shared that outgoing package. The verdict reflects only verified transaction terms and realized team value.