# 1958–59 NBA season

The 1958–59 NBA Season was the 13th season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Boston Celtics winning the NBA Championship (the first of what would be 8 straight), beating the Minneapolis Lakers 4 games to 0 in the NBA Finals.

## Notable occurrences

* The 1959 NBA All-Star Game was played in Detroit, Michigan, with the West beating the East 124–108. Bob Pettit of the St. Louis Hawks and Elgin Baylor of the Minneapolis Lakers shared the game's MVP award.
* The Boston Celtics set the record for the most points scored by a team in regulation, in their 173–139 victory over the Minneapolis Lakers.
Coaching changes :
| Offseason |||
| Team | 1957–58 coach | 1958–59 coach |
| Minneapolis Lakers | George Mikan | John Kundla |
| New York Knicks | Vince Boryla | Andrew Levane |
| Philadelphia Warriors | George Senesky | Al Cervi |
| In-season |||
| Team | Outgoing coach | Incoming coach |
| Cincinnati Royals | Bobby Wanzer | Tom Marshall |
| St. Louis Hawks | Andy Phillip | Ed Macauley |

## Teams

1958-59 National Basketball Association :
| Division | Team | City | Arena | Capacity |
| Eastern | Boston Celtics | Boston, Massachusetts | Boston Garden | 13,909 |
| Eastern | New York Knicks | New York, New York | Madison Square Garden | 18,496 |
| Eastern | Philadelphia Warriors | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Municipal Auditorium | 12,000 |
| Eastern | Syracuse Nationals | Syracuse, New York | Onondaga War Memorial | 6,230 |
| Western | Cincinnati Royals | Cincinnati, Ohio | Cincinnati Gardens | 11,000 |
| Western | Detroit Pistons | Detroit, Michigan | Olympia Stadium | 15,000 |
| Western | Minneapolis Lakers | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Minneapolis Auditorium | 10,000 |
| Western | St. Louis Hawks | St. Louis, Missouri | Kiel Auditorium | 9,300 |

## Final standings
### Eastern Division

| Eastern Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Neutral | Div |
| x-Boston Celtics | 52 | 20 | .722 | – | 26–4 | 13–15 | 13–1 | 23–13 |
| x-New York Knicks | 40 | 32 | .556 | 12 | 21–9 | 15–15 | 4–8 | 19–17 |
| x-Syracuse Nationals | 35 | 37 | .486 | 17 | 17–9 | 7–24 | 8–7 | 14–22 |
| Philadelphia Warriors | 32 | 40 | .444 | 20 | 17–9 | 7–24 | 8–7 | 14–22 |

### Western Division

| Western Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Neutral | Div |
| x-St. Louis Hawks | 49 | 23 | .681 | – | 28–3 | 14–15 | 7–5 | 27–9 |
| x-Minneapolis Lakers | 33 | 39 | .458 | 16 | 15–7 | 9–17 | 9–15 | 18–18 |
| x-Detroit Pistons | 28 | 44 | .389 | 21 | 13–17 | 8–20 | 7–7 | 17–19 |
| Cincinnati Royals | 19 | 53 | .264 | 30 | 9–19 | 2–25 | 8–9 | 10–26 |
x – clinched playoff spot

## Playoffs

| Division Semifinals | Division Semifinals | Division Semifinals | Division Finals | Division Finals | Division Finals | NBA Finals | NBA Finals | NBA Finals |
| | | | Eastern Division | Eastern Division | Eastern Division | | | |
| | | | E1 | Boston* | 4 | | | |
| E3 | Syracuse | 2 | E3 | Syracuse | 3 | | | |
| E2 | New York | 0 | | | | E1 | Boston* | 4 |
| | | | Western Division | Western Division | Western Division | W2 | Minneapolis | 0 |
| | | | W1 | St. Louis* | 2 | | | |
| W3 | Detroit | 1 | W2 | Minneapolis | 4 | | | |
| W2 | Minneapolis | 2 | | | | | | |
* * 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 | 2,105 |
| Rebounds | Bill Russell | Boston Celtics | 1,612 |
| Assists | Bob Cousy | Boston Celtics | 557 |
| FG% | Kenny Sears | New York Knicks | .490 |
| FT% | Bill Sharman | Boston Celtics | .932 |
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 Pettit, St. Louis Hawks
* Rookie of the Year: Elgin Baylor, Minneapolis Lakers
* All-NBA First Team:
** F – Elgin Baylor, Minneapolis Lakers
** F – Bob Pettit, St. Louis Hawks
** C – Bill Russell, Boston Celtics
** G – Bob Cousy, Boston Celtics
** G – Bill Sharman, Boston Celtics
* All-NBA Second Team:
** F – Paul Arizin, Philadelphia Warriors
** F – Cliff Hagan, St. Louis Hawks
** C – Dolph Schayes, Syracuse Nationals
** G – Richie Guerin, New York Knicks
** G – Slater Martin, St. Louis Hawks