1956–57 NBA season

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1956–57 NBA season
LeagueNational Basketball Association
SportBasketball
Duration
  • October 27, 1956 – March 13, 1957
  • March 14–25, 1957 (Playoffs)
  • March 30–April 13, 1957 (Finals)
Number of games72
Number of teams8
TV partner(s)NBC
Draft
Top draft pickSihugo Green
Picked byRochester Royals
Regular season
Season MVPBob Cousy (Boston)
Top scorerPaul Arizin (Philadelphia)
Playoffs
Eastern championsBoston Celtics
  Eastern runners-upSyracuse Nationals
Western championsSt. Louis Hawks
  Western runners-upMinneapolis Lakers
Finals
ChampionsBoston Celtics
  Runners-upSt. Louis Hawks
NBA seasons

The 1956–57 NBA season was the 11th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Boston Celtics winning the NBA Championship (which would be the first of their 17 NBA titles), beating the St. Louis Hawks 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals.

Notable occurrences[]

Coaching changes
Offseason
Team 1955–56 coach 1956–57 coach
N/A
In-season
Team Outgoing coach Incoming coach
St. Louis Hawks Red Holzman Slater Martin
Alex Hannum
Syracuse Nationals Al Cervi Paul Seymour

Final standings[]

Eastern Division[]

Eastern Division W L PCT GB Home Road Neutral Div
x-Boston Celtics 44 28 .611 - 24-4 11-18 9-6 20-16
x-Syracuse Nationals 38 34 .528 6 23-9 9-15 6-10 20-16
x-Philadelphia Warriors 37 35 .514 7 20-5 5–25 12-5 17-19
New York Knicks 36 36 .500 8 18-10 9-19 9-7 15-21


Western Division[]

Western Division W L PCT GB Home Road Neutral Div
x-St. Louis Hawks 34 38 .472 - 17-9 10-20 7-9 22-14
x-Minneapolis Lakers 34 38 .472 - 15-9 5-22 14-7 18-18
x-Fort Wayne Pistons 34 38 .472 - 23-5 5-23 6-10 17-19
Rochester Royals 31 41 .431 3 19-10 7-17 5-14 15-21
  • St. Louis finished ahead of Fort Wayne and Minneapolis by defeating them in tiebreaker matches.


x – clinched playoff spot

Playoffs[]

  Division Semifinals Division Finals NBA Finals
                           
E3 Philadelphia 0     E1 Boston* 3
E2 Syracuse 2     E2 Syracuse 0  
Eastern Division
  E1 Boston* 4
  W1 St. Louis* 3
W3 Fort Wayne 0     W1 St. Louis* 3
W2 Minneapolis 2     W2 Minneapolis 0
Western Division

* Division winner
Bold Series winner
Italic Team with home-court advantage in NBA Finals


Statistics leaders[]

Category Player Team Stat
Points Paul Arizin Philadelphia Warriors 1,817
Rebounds Maurice Stokes Rochester Royals 1,256
Assists Bob Cousy Boston Celtics 478
FG% Neil Johnston Philadelphia Warriors .447
FT% Bill Sharman Boston Celtics .905

Note: Prior to the 1969–70 season, league leaders in points, rebounds, and assists were determined by totals rather than averages.

NBA awards[]

References[]


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