The 1953–54 NBA season was the eighth season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Minneapolis Lakers winning their 5th NBA Championship in 6 years, beating the Syracuse Nationals 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals. It was also the final time the Lakers would win an NBA Championship before the franchise moved to Los Angeles in 1960.

1953–54 NBA season
LeagueNational Basketball Association
SportBasketball
DurationOctober 30, 1953 – March 14, 1954
March 16–28, 1954 (Playoffs)
March 31 – April 12, 1954 (Finals)
Number of games72
Number of teams9
TV partner(s)DuMont
Draft
Top draft pickRay Felix
Picked byBaltimore Bullets
Regular season
Top seedMinneapolis Lakers
Top scorerNeil Johnston (Philadelphia)
Playoffs
Eastern championsSyracuse Nationals
  Eastern runners-upBoston Celtics
Western championsMinneapolis Lakers
  Western runners-upRochester Royals
Finals
ChampionsMinneapolis Lakers
  Runners-upSyracuse Nationals
NBA seasons

Notable occurrences

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Coaching changes
Offseason
Team 1952–53 coach 1953–54 coach
N/A
In-season
Team Outgoing coach Incoming coach
Milwaukee Hawks Andrew Levane Red Holzman

Teams

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1953-54 National Basketball Association
Division Team City Arena Capacity
Eastern Baltimore Bullets Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore Coliseum 4,500
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
Milwaukee Hawks Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee Arena 10,783
Minneapolis Lakers Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis Auditorium 10,000
Rochester Royals Rochester, New York Edgerton Park Arena 4,200

Map of teams

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  Eastern Division   Western Division

Final standings

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Eastern Division

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W L PCT GB Home Road Neutral Div
x-New York Knicks 44 28 .611 18–8 15–13 11–7 24–16
x-Boston Celtics 42 30 .583 2 17–6 10–19 15–5 25–15
x-Syracuse Nationals 42 30 .583 2 26–6 11–17 5–7 21–19
Philadelphia Warriors 29 43 .403 15 10–9 6–16 13–18 19–21
Baltimore Bullets 16 56 .222 28 12–18 0–22 4–16 11–29

Western Division

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W L PCT GB Home Road Neutral Div
x-Minneapolis Lakers 46 26 .639 20–4 13–15 13–7 19–13
x-Rochester Royals 44 28 .611 2 18–10 12–15 14–3 22–10
x-Fort Wayne Pistons 40 32 .556 6 19–8 11–17 10–7 17–15
Milwaukee Hawks 21 51 .292 25 11–14 5–17 6–20 6–26

x – clinched playoff spot

Playoffs

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Division Round Robin SemifinalsDivision FinalsNBA Finals
Eastern Division
E1New York*0–4
E1Syracuse2
E2Boston2–2
E2Boston0
E3Syracuse4–0
E1Syracuse3
Western DivisionW1Minneapolis*4
W1Minneapolis*3–0
W1Minneapolis*2
W2Rochester2–1
W2Rochester1
W3Fort Wayne0–4
  • * Division winner
  • Bold Series winner (Division Round Robin Semifinals: top 2 advanced)
  • Italic Team with home-court advantage in NBA Finals

Statistics leaders

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Category Player Team Stat
Points Neil Johnston Philadelphia Warriors 1,759
Rebounds Harry Gallatin New York Knicks 1,098
Assists Bob Cousy Boston Celtics 518
FG% Ed Macauley Boston Celtics .486
FT% Bill Sharman Boston Celtics .844

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

NBA awards

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See also

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References

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