| 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 |
| SeasonMVP | 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 | |
| Venue | |
| Champions | Philadelphia Warriors |
| Runners-up | Fort Wayne Pistons |
| NBA seasons | |
The1955–56 NBA season was the 10th season of theNational Basketball Association. The season ended with thePhiladelphia Warriors winning the NBA Championship, beating theFort Wayne Pistons 4 games to 1 in theNBA Finals.
| 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 |
| 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 |
| 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 |
x – clinched playoff spot
| 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 | |||||||||||
| 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.