1956–57 NBA season

1956–57 NBA season
League	National Basketball Association
Sport	Basketball
Number of games	72
Number of teams	8
TV partner(s)	NBC
Regular season
Season MVP	Bob Cousy (Boston)
Top scorer	Paul Arizin (Philadelphia)
Playoffs
Eastern champions	Boston Celtics
Eastern runners-up	Syracuse Nationals
Western champions	St. Louis Hawks
Western runners-up	Minneapolis Lakers
Finals
Champions	Boston Celtics
Runners-up	St. Louis Hawks

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

• The 1957 NBA All-Star Game was played in Boston, Massachusetts, with the East beating the West 109-97. Local hero Bob Cousy of the Boston Celtics wins the game's MVP award.

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

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

• Most Valuable Player: Bob Cousy, Boston Celtics
• Rookie of the Year: Tom Heinsohn, Boston Celtics

• All-NBA First Team:
  • Paul Arizin, Philadelphia Warriors
  • Bob Pettit, St. Louis Hawks
  • Bob Cousy, Boston Celtics
  • Bill Sharman, Boston Celtics
  • Dolph Schayes, Syracuse Nationals

• All-NBA Second Team:
  • Dick Garmaker, Minneapolis Lakers
  • Neil Johnston, Philadelphia Warriors
  • Slater Martin, St. Louis Hawks
  • Maurice Stokes, Rochester Royals
  • George Yardley, Fort Wayne Pistons

References

• 1956–57 NBA Season Summary basketball-reference.com. Retrieved December 10, 2010