The Verified November 8 Swap
Basketball-Reference's Los Angeles, Milwaukee and league transaction ledgers agree on the November 8, 1974 structure: the Lakers acquired Lucius Allen and sent Jim Price to the Bucks. Wayne Embry's Milwaukee executive record independently preserves the same player-for-player trade. There were no draft picks or cash in the original exchange, so the retrospective comparison begins with two guards whose direct production can be measured cleanly before following what each club later received when it moved them again.
Allen Became a Major Lakers Guard Immediately
Allen stepped into a large role in Los Angeles. He played 56 games for the Lakers after the trade in 1974-75 and averaged 19.5 points, 5.7 assists and 4.4 rebounds in 35.9 minutes. He returned for 76 games in 1975-76 at 14.7 points and 4.7 assists, then 78 games in 1976-77 at 14.6 points and 5.2 assists. That is 210 regular-season games over three seasons, with starter-level usage throughout most of the run. The first post-trade season alone supplied more offensive creation than the legacy B-minus grade suggested.
Los Angeles Preserved Downstream Value
On June 1, 1977, the Lakers traded Allen to Kansas City for Ollie Johnson plus 1978 first- and second-round picks. Basketball-Reference's Lakers, Kings and league transaction ledgers all preserve that package, with the draft assets later associated with Purvis Short and Ron Carter. The Lakers should not be credited with those players' careers simply because the picks later became their selections, but the package proves Allen still carried substantial transaction value after three productive Los Angeles seasons. That downstream return raises the value of the original acquisition beyond Allen's direct box-score production.
Price Was Productive for Milwaukee Too
Jim Price also gave his new team substantial immediate value. He played 41 games for Milwaukee after the trade in 1974-75 and averaged 14.9 points, 5.4 assists and 3.8 rebounds in 37.3 minutes. He then played 80 games in 1975-76 at 11.7 points and 4.9 assists before appearing in six more games for the Bucks in 1976-77. Across the Milwaukee portion of his career, Price produced 127 regular-season appearances and handled a meaningful share of the club's backcourt creation. That direct return supports a high grade even though Allen's Lakers tenure was longer.
Price's Downstream Pick Helped Milwaukee Reach Marques Johnson
Milwaukee traded Price to Buffalo on November 2, 1976 for a 1977 first-round pick that became No. 13 Tate Armstrong. On June 7, 1977, the Bucks packaged Swen Nater and that same first-round asset to Buffalo for the No. 3 pick, which Milwaukee used on Marques Johnson. It would be incorrect to attribute Johnson's later Bucks career entirely to Price because Nater was also a major part of the exchange. Still, the Price-derived first-rounder clearly contributed to obtaining one of Milwaukee's most important late-1970s players.
Final Verdict
Slight Lakers Edge, A+/A. Los Angeles receives an A+ because Allen gave the club 210 games of high-minute guard production and later returned Ollie Johnson plus two draft assets. Milwaukee receives an A because Price supplied 127 productive games and was converted into a first-round pick that became part of the package used to acquire the No. 3 Marques Johnson selection. Both franchises extracted major value from the same one-for-one trade. The Lakers' edge comes from Allen's larger direct body of work and broader downstream package, not from Milwaukee receiving a poor return. Confidence is high on the original exchange and the major downstream transactions. The verdict reflects only verified transaction terms and realized team value.