1955–56 NBA season
10th NBA season
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The 1955–56 NBA season was the 10th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Philadelphia Warriors winning the NBA championship, beating the Fort Wayne Pistons 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals.
SportBasketball
Duration
- November 5, 1955 – March 14, 1956
- March 15–16, 1956
(Play-in tournaments) - March 15–29, 1956 (Playoffs)
- March 31 – April 7, 1956 (Finals)
Games72
| 1955–56 NBA season | |
|---|---|
| League | National Basketball Association |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration |
|
| Games | 72 |
| Teams | 8 |
| TV partner | NBC |
| Draft | |
| Top draft pick | Dick Ricketts |
| Picked by | St. Louis Hawks |
| Regular season | |
| Season champions | Philadelphia Warriors |
| Season MVP | Bob Pettit (St. Louis) |
| Top scorer | Bob Pettit (St. Louis) |
| Playoffs | |
| Eastern champions | Philadelphia Warriors |
| Eastern runners-up | Syracuse Nationals |
| Western champions | Fort Wayne Pistons |
| Western runners-up | St. Louis Hawks |
| Finals | |
| Champions | Philadelphia Warriors |
| Runners-up | Fort Wayne Pistons |
Notable occurrences
- The Hawks relocate from Milwaukee, Wisconsin to St. Louis, Missouri.
- The NBA hands out a Most Valuable Player award for the first time. Its inaugural recipient is Bob Pettit of the St. Louis Hawks. Also, the All-NBA teams are no longer positionless and now have two guards, two forwards, and a center on each team.
- The 1956 NBA All-Star Game was played in Rochester, New York, with the West beating the East 108–94. Bob Pettit of the St. Louis Hawks wins the game's MVP award.
| Offseason | ||
|---|---|---|
| Team | 1954–55 coach | 1955–56 coach |
| Philadelphia Warriors | Edward Gottlieb | George Senesky |
| Rochester Royals | Les Harrison | Bobby Wanzer |
| In-season | ||
| Team | Outgoing coach | Incoming coach |
| New York Knicks | Joe Lapchick | Vince Boryla |
Final standings
Eastern Division
| W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Neutral | Div | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x-Philadelphia Warriors | 45 | 27 | .625 | - | 21-7 | 11-17 | 13-3 | 22-14 |
| x-Boston Celtics | 39 | 33 | .542 | 6 | 20-7 | 12-15 | 7-11 | 18-18 |
| x-Syracuse Nationals | 35 | 37 | .486 | 10 | 23-8 | 9–19 | 3-10 | 15-21 |
| New York Knicks | 35 | 37 | .486 | 10 | 13-15 | 16-13 | 6-9 | 17-19 |
- Syracuse finished ahead of New York by defeating them in a tiebreaker match.
Western Division
| W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Neutral | Div | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x-Fort Wayne Pistons | 37 | 35 | .514 | - | 19-7 | 10-17 | 8-11 | 19-17 |
| x-Minneapolis Lakers | 33 | 39 | .458 | 4 | 14-12 | 6-21 | 13-6 | 19-17 |
| x-St. Louis Hawks | 33 | 39 | .458 | 4 | 15-11 | 11-17 | 7-11 | 18-18 |
| Rochester Royals | 31 | 41 | .431 | 6 | 15-14 | 6-21 | 10-6 | 16-20 |
- Minneapolis finished ahead of St. Louis by defeating them in a tiebreaker match.
x – clinched playoff spot
Playoffs
| Division Semifinals | Division Finals | NBA Finals | |||||||||||
| E1 | Philadelphia* | 3 | |||||||||||
| E3 | Syracuse | 2 | E3 | Syracuse | 2 | ||||||||
| E2 | Boston | 1 | E1 | Philadelphia* | 4 | ||||||||
| W1 | Fort Wayne* | 1 | |||||||||||
| W1 | Fort Wayne* | 3 | |||||||||||
| W3 | St. Louis | 2 | W3 | St. Louis | 2 | ||||||||
| W2 | Minneapolis | 1 | |||||||||||
- * Division winner
- Bold Series winner
- Italic Team with home-court advantage in NBA Finals
Statistics leaders
| Category | Player | Team | Stat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Points | Bob Pettit | St. Louis Hawks | 1,849 |
| Rebounds | Bob Pettit | St. Louis Hawks | 1,164 |
| Assists | Bob Cousy | Boston Celtics | 642 |
| FG% | Neil Johnston | Philadelphia Warriors | .457 |
| FT% | Bill Sharman | Boston Celtics | .867 |
Note: Prior to the 1969–70 season, league leaders in points, rebounds, and assists were determined by totals rather than averages.
NBA awards
- Most Valuable Player: Bob Pettit, St. Louis Hawks
- Rookie of the Year: Maurice Stokes, Rochester Royals
- All-NBA First Team:
- F – Paul Arizin, Philadelphia Warriors
- F – Bob Pettit, St. Louis Hawks
- C – Neil Johnston, Philadelphia Warriors
- G – Bob Cousy, Boston Celtics
- G – Bill Sharman, Boston Celtics
- All-NBA Second Team:
- F – Dolph Schayes, Syracuse Nationals
- F – Maurice Stokes, Rochester Royals
- C – Clyde Lovellette, Minneapolis Lakers
- G – Jack George, Philadelphia Warriors
- G – Slater Martin, Minneapolis Lakers
See also
References
- 1955–56 NBA Season Summary basketball-reference.com. Retrieved December 10, 2010