The 1952–53 NBA season was the seventh season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Minneapolis Lakers winning the NBA Championship, beating the New York Knicks 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals.
| 1952–53 NBA season | |
|---|---|
| League | National Basketball Association |
| Sport | Basketball |
| Duration | October 31, 1952 – March 17, 1953 March 17 – April 2, 1953 (Playoffs) April 4–10, 1953 (Finals) |
| Number of games | 69-71 |
| Number of teams | 10 |
| Draft | |
| Top draft pick | Mark Workman |
| Picked by | Baltimore Bullets |
| Regular season | |
| Top seed | Minneapolis Lakers |
| Top scorer | Neil Johnston (Philadelphia) |
| Playoffs | |
| Eastern champions | New York Knicks |
| Eastern runners-up | Boston Celtics |
| Western champions | Minneapolis Lakers |
| Western runners-up | Fort Wayne Pistons |
| Finals | |
| Champions | Minneapolis Lakers |
| Runners-up | New York Knicks |
| NBA seasons | |
| Offseason | ||
|---|---|---|
| Team | 1951–52 coach | 1952–53 coach |
| Milwaukee Hawks | Doxie Moore | Andrew Levane |
| In-season | ||
| Team | Outgoing coach | Incoming coach |
| Baltimore Bullets | Chick Reiser | Clair Bee |
|
|
W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Neutral | Div |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x-New York Knicks | 47 | 23 | .671 | - | 22-4 | 15-14 | 10-5 | 30-10 |
| x-Syracuse Nationals | 47 | 24 | .662 | 0.5 | 32-2 | 10-20 | 5-2 | 26-15 |
| x-Boston Celtics | 46 | 25 | .648 | 1.5 | 21-3 | 11-18 | 14-4 | 28-13 |
| x-Baltimore Bullets | 16 | 54 | .229 | 31 | 11-20 | 1–19 | 4-15 | 10-30 |
| Philadelphia Warriors | 12 | 57 | .174 | 34.5 | 5-12 | 1–28 | 6-17 | 7-33 |
|
|
W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Neutral | Div |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x-Minneapolis Lakers | 48 | 22 | .686 | - | 24-2 | 16-15 | 8-5 | 17-13 |
| x-Rochester Royals | 44 | 26 | .629 | 4 | 24-8 | 13-17 | 7-1 | 27-13 |
| x-Fort Wayne Pistons | 36 | 33 | .522 | 11.5 | 25-9 | 8-19 | 3-5 | 18-22 |
| x-Indianapolis Olympians | 28 | 43 | .394 | 20.5 | 19-14 | 4-23 | 5-6 | 15-26 |
| Milwaukee Hawks | 27 | 44 | .380 | 21.5 | 14-8 | 3-24 | 10-12 | 15-26 |
x – clinched playoff spot
| Division Semifinals | Division Finals | NBA Finals | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York* | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E4 | Baltimore | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York* | 3 | ||||||||||||
| Eastern Division | ||||||||||||||
| E3 | Boston | 1 | ||||||||||||
| E3 | Boston | 2 | ||||||||||||
| E2 | Syracuse | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E1 | New York* | 1 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Minneapolis* | 4 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Minneapolis* | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W4 | Indianapolis | 0 | ||||||||||||
| W1 | Minneapolis* | 3 | ||||||||||||
| Western Division | ||||||||||||||
| W3 | Fort Wayne | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W3 | Fort Wayne | 2 | ||||||||||||
| W2 | Rochester | 1 | ||||||||||||
| Category | Player | Team | Stat |
|---|---|---|---|
| Points | Neil Johnston | Philadelphia Warriors | 1,564 |
| Rebounds | George Mikan | Minneapolis Lakers | 1,007 |
| Assists | Bob Cousy | Boston Celtics | 547 |
| FG% | Neil Johnston | Philadelphia Warriors | .452 |
| FT% | Bill Sharman | Boston Celtics | .850 |
Note: Prior to the 1969–70 season, league leaders in points, rebounds, and assists were determined by totals rather than averages.
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