The October 21 Transaction Is Unusually Well Documented
Basketball-Reference's Denver, Virginia and ABA transaction ledgers all record the same exchange: Denver sent Fatty Taylor to the Squires for Chuck Williams on October 21, 1975. Carl Scheer's Denver executive record and Jack Ankerson's Virginia record repeat the deal. The timing adds important context. Earlier that day Virginia selected Williams from the Baltimore Claws in the dispersal draft after the Claws folded before playing a regular-season game. The Squires then immediately moved him to Denver for Taylor.
Williams Became a Major Part of Denver's Final ABA Team
Williams played 79 regular-season games for Denver in 1975-76, averaging 11.0 points, 4.7 assists and 2.7 rebounds in 32.0 minutes. Basketball-Reference also marks him as an ABA All-Star that season. Denver finished with the league's best regular-season record and reached the final ABA Finals, so Williams' value was not empty-volume production on a losing club. He was a substantial guard on a contender during the exact season when the franchise was preparing to enter the NBA.
Taylor Was Productive for Virginia, but the Team Had No Future
Fatty Taylor also gave his new club legitimate minutes. He played 76 games for Virginia and averaged 8.2 points, 5.3 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 2.7 steals in 32.7 minutes. Those numbers make the old C-minus Denver grade too harsh on the deal's balance because Virginia did receive a real starting guard. The problem is organizational context: the Squires went 15-68, missed the playoffs and disappeared after the season. Taylor's one year therefore produced no retained franchise value beyond the final Virginia campaign.
Denver Retained Williams Through the ABA-NBA Transition
Williams remained with the Nuggets when the ABA clubs entered the NBA. He appeared in 21 games for Denver in 1976-77 before the club traded him and Gus Gerard to Buffalo for Jim Price on December 15, 1976. That later deal means Williams generated a second layer of value beyond his strong 1975-76 season. The original October trade should not receive full credit for Price because Gerard was also part of the package, but Williams was a real component of the acquisition and therefore carried measurable downstream utility.
The Trade Also Illustrates Denver's Rapid Guard Reconfiguration
Denver's later moves add an unusual wrinkle. In August 1976 the Nuggets reacquired Fatty Taylor from Philadelphia for a 1977 second-round pick after the Virginia franchise had disappeared. Taylor then played 79 NBA games for Denver in 1976-77. That later reacquisition is a separate transaction and should not be credited to the Squires side of this October deal, but it shows that Denver still valued Taylor. The key point for this review is narrower: on October 21, 1975 Denver exchanged one useful veteran guard for another who immediately became an All-Star-level contributor and later retained trade value.
Final Verdict
Nuggets Win, A-/B. Denver receives an A- because Williams delivered 79 games, 11.0 points and 4.7 assists for an ABA Finals team, earned All-Star recognition, stayed through the NBA transition and later helped form the package for Jim Price. Virginia receives a B because Taylor was genuinely useful, starting most of the Squires' final season and supplying playmaking, rebounding and defensive activity. The gap comes from team context and retained value rather than from Taylor failing individually. Confidence is high on the transaction, both players' 1975-76 production and Williams' later Buffalo trade. The verdict reflects only verified transaction terms and realized team value.