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1955–56 NBA season
1955–56 NBA season
League	National Basketball Association
Sport	Basketball
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);
Number of games	72
Number of teams	8
TV partner(s)	NBC
Draft
Top draft pick	Dick Ricketts
Picked by	Milwaukee Hawks
Regular season
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
NBA seasons
	← 1954–55 1956–57 →

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.

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.

Coaching changes
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

Teams

Division	Team	City	Arena	Capacity
1955-56 National Basketball Association
Eastern	Boston Celtics	Boston, Massachusetts	Boston Garden	13,909
	New York Knicks	New York, New York	Madison Square Garden	18,496
	Philadelphia Warriors	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Municipal Auditorium	12,000
	Syracuse Nationals	Syracuse, New York	Onondaga War Memorial	6,230
Western	Fort Wayne Pistons	Fort Wayne, Indiana	War Memorial Coliseum	10,000
	Minneapolis Lakers	Minneapolis, Minnesota	Minneapolis Auditorium	10,000
	Rochester Royals	Rochester, New York	Rochester Community War Memorial	12,428
	St. Louis Hawks	St. Louis, Missouri	Kiel Auditorium	9,300

Map of teams

Boston

New York

Phila-
delphia

Syracuse

Fort Wayne

Minneapolis

Rochester

St. Louis

Eastern Division

Western Division

Final standings

Eastern Division

Eastern Division v t e	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

Western Division v t e	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

Eastern Division

E1

Philadelphia*

3

E3

Syracuse

2

E3

Syracuse

2

E2

Boston

1

E1

Philadelphia*

4

Western Division

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