In Virginia
Merger talks with the NBA were already underway, but a major stumbling block was the presence of the Caps in Washington. Baltimore Bullets owner Abe Pollin wanted to move his team to Washington, but didn't want the Caps there. The other ABA owners persuaded Foreman to move the Caps for the second time in as many seasons. Foreman decided to make the Caps a regional franchise, the Virginia Squires. The team would be based in Norfolk, and also played home games in Hampton, Richmond and Roanoke. However, Roanoke was dropped from the list of "home" cities after only one season. The Squires' colors were red, white, and blue.
Rick Barry, who originally played with the inaugural Oaks, appeared on the August 24, 1970 front cover of Sports Illustrated in a Squires uniform; in the accompanying article inside the magazine, Barry made several negative remarks about the Commonwealth of Virginia. (He angered Southerners by remarking that he didn't want his children to grow up saying, "Hi, y'all, Dad.") On September 1, 1970, the Squires traded Barry to the New York Nets for a draft pick and $200,000. The negative comments weren't the primary reason; rather, Foreman was still bogged down by financial troubles and sold Barry to help meet his expenses.
The Squires played most of their games at Old Dominion University's fieldhouse in their first season as a "regional" franchise, with other matches at the Richmond Arena, Hampton Coliseum and Roanoke Civic Center. In spite of the initial controversy surrounding former player Barry, the Squires finished their inaugural season in Virginia by winning the Eastern Division by 11 games. They defeated the New York Nets in the first round of the ABA playoffs but went on to be upset by the Kentucky Colonels. In 1971, the Squires make their biggest draft pick ever by drafting Julius Erving from the University of Massachusetts Amherst. During the 1971-72 season, Erving became an instant sensation with his scoring prowess and dazzling on-court acrobatics; the Squires defeated The Floridians in the first round of the playoffs but lost to the New York Nets in the second round.
The 1972-73 season marked the beginning of the Virginia Squires downturn. Although blessed with a combination of Julius Erving ("Dr. J") and a young George Gervin, the duo only played together late in the season. The Squires lost to their division rival Kentucky in the first round of the playoffs. During the summer of 1973, Dr. J was sold to the New York Nets for cash.
During the 1974 ABA All-Star Weekend, rumors abounded that Gervin was about to be sold to the San Antonio Spurs. These rumors became fact on January 30. ABA commissioner Mike Storen tried to block the sale on the grounds that selling the team's last true star was not in the best interest of the league. However, the sale was eventually upheld.
This angered many Squire fans, and attendance soon plummeted. The Squires' final two seasons in the ABA were forgettable as the losses mounted and popular coach Al Bianchi was fired. The 1974-75 and 1975-76 teams went 15-69 -the worst winning percentages in ABA history. The team was coming unraveled off the court as well. In 1974, Barry Parkhill sued the team after his paychecks bounced. The Squires nearly shut down for good in February 1976, but only managed to stay afloat by a sale of advertising banners and a $250,000 loan from a local bank. Even if the Squires had been on stronger financial ground, they stood no chance of being included in any ABA-NBA merger. "Regional" franchises were not considered viable, and none of the Squires' home cities were nearly big enough to support an NBA team.
On May 11, 1976—only a month after the end of the season—the ABA canceled the franchise after it missed a $75,000 assessment. This cost the Squires a chance to be compensated as part of the merger, which closed only a month later.
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