# 1951–52 NBA season

The 1951–52 NBA season was the sixth 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 3 in the NBA Finals.

## Notable occurrences

* The Tri-Cities Blackhawks relocated from the "Tri-Cities" area (Moline, Illinois, Rock Island, Illinois & Davenport, Iowa) to Milwaukee, Wisconsin and became the Milwaukee Hawks.
* The 1952 NBA All-Star Game was played in Boston, Massachusetts, with the East beating the West 108–91. Paul Arizin of the Philadelphia Warriors won the game's MVP award.
Coaching changes :
| Offseason |||
| Team | 1950–51 coach | 1951–52 coach |
| Baltimore Bullets | Walt Budko | Fred Scolari |
| Fort Wayne Pistons | Murray Mendenhall | Paul Birch |
| Indianapolis Olympians | Wally Jones | Herm Schaefer |
| In-season |||
| Team | Outgoing coach | Incoming coach |
| Baltimore Bullets | Fred Scolari | Chick Reiser |

## Teams

1951-52 National Basketball Association :
| Division | Team | City | Arena | Capacity |
| Eastern | Baltimore Bullets | Baltimore, Maryland | Baltimore Coliseum | 4,500 |
| 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 | Philadelphia Arena | 7,000 |
| Eastern | Syracuse Nationals | Syracuse, New York | Onondaga War Memorial | 6,230 |
| Western | Fort Wayne Pistons | Fort Wayne, Indiana | North Side High School Gym | 3,000 |
| Western | Indianapolis Olympians | Indianapolis, Indiana | Hinkle Fieldhouse | 15,000 |
| Western | Milwaukee Hawks | Milwaukee, Wisconsin | Milwaukee Arena | 10,783 |
| Western | Minneapolis Lakers | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Minneapolis Auditorium | 10,000 |
| Western | Rochester Royals | Rochester, New York | Edgerton Park Arena | 4,200 |

## Final standings
### Eastern Division

| Eastern Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Neutral | Div |
| x-Syracuse Nationals | 40 | 26 | .606 | – | 26–7 | 12–18 | 2–1 | 21–15 |
| x-Boston Celtics | 39 | 27 | .591 | 1 | 22–7 | 10–19 | 7–1 | 22–14 |
| x-New York Knicks | 37 | 29 | .561 | 3 | 21–4 | 12–22 | 4–3 | 23–13 |
| x-Philadelphia Warriors | 33 | 33 | .500 | 7 | 24–7 | 6–25 | 3–1 | 14–22 |
| Baltimore Bullets | 20 | 46 | .303 | 20 | 17–15 | 2–22 | 1–9 | 10–26 |

### Western Division

| Western Divisionvte | W | L | PCT | GB | Home | Road | Neutral | Div |
| x-Rochester Royals | 41 | 25 | .621 | – | 28–5 | 12–18 | 1–2 | 22–14 |
| x-Minneapolis Lakers | 40 | 26 | .606 | 1 | 21–5 | 13–20 | 6–1 | 24–12 |
| x-Indianapolis Olympians | 34 | 32 | .515 | 7 | 25–6 | 4–24 | 5–2 | 18–18 |
| x-Fort Wayne Pistons | 29 | 37 | .439 | 12 | 22–11 | 6–24 | 1–2 | 17–19 |
| Milwaukee Hawks | 17 | 49 | .258 | 24 | 8–13 | 3–22 | 6–14 | 9–27 |
    x – Clinched playoff spot

## Playoffs

| Division Semifinals | Division Semifinals | Division Semifinals | Division Finals | Division Finals | Division Finals | NBA Finals | NBA Finals | NBA Finals |
| E1 | Syracuse* | 2 | | | | | | |
| E4 | Philadelphia | 1 | | | | | | |
| E4 | Philadelphia | 1 | E1 | Syracuse* | 1 | | | |
| Eastern Division | Eastern Division | Eastern Division | E1 | Syracuse* | 1 | | | |
| Eastern Division | Eastern Division | Eastern Division | E3 | New York | 3 | | | |
| E3 | New York | 2 | E3 | New York | 3 | | | |
| E2 | Boston | 1 | | | | | | |
| E2 | Boston | 1 | | | | E3 | New York | 3 |
| | | | | | | W2 | Minneapolis | 4 |
| W1 | Rochester* | 2 | | | | | | | W2 | Minneapolis | 4 |
| W4 | Fort Wayne | 0 | | | | | | |
| W4 | Fort Wayne | 0 | W1 | Rochester* | 1 | | | |
| Western Division | Western Division | Western Division | W1 | Rochester* | 1 | | | |
| Western Division | Western Division | Western Division | W2 | Minneapolis | 3 | | | |
| W3 | Indianapolis | 0 | W2 | Minneapolis | 3 | | | |
| W2 | Minneapolis | 2 | | | | | | |
* * Division winner
* Bold Series winner
* Italic Team with home-court advantage in NBA Finals

## Statistics leaders

| Category | Player | Team | Stat |
| Points | Paul Arizin | Philadelphia Warriors | 1,674 |
| Rebounds | Larry Foust Mel Hutchins | Fort Wayne Pistons Milwaukee Hawks | 880 |
| Assists | Andy Phillip | Philadelphia Warriors | 539 |
| FG% | Paul Arizin | Philadelphia Warriors | .448 |
| FT% | Bobby Wanzer | Rochester Royals | .904 |
Note: Prior to the 1969–70 season, league leaders in points, rebounds, and assists were determined by totals rather than averages.

## NBA awards

* All-NBA First Team:
** Paul Arizin, Philadelphia Warriors
** Bob Cousy, Boston Celtics
** Ed Macauley, Boston Celtics
** Bob Davies, Rochester Royals
** Dolph Schayes, Syracuse Nationals
** George Mikan, Minneapolis Lakers
* All-NBA Second Team:
** Larry Foust, Fort Wayne Pistons
** Vern Mikkelsen, Minneapolis Lakers
** Andy Phillip, Philadelphia Warriors
** Jim Pollard, Minneapolis Lakers
** Bobby Wanzer, Rochester Royals