Tag: bill russell

The NBA Time Machine: 1966

Posted on by in Sports, The NBA Time Machine

Published February 10, 2023

The NBA Time Machine:
1966

Eastern Emergence

Here Comes the 76ers!

Last regular season, the Philadelphia 76ers were an incredibly run-of-the-mill team. They had an even 40-40 record and finished right in the middle of both offensive and defensive rating, even after acquiring Wilt Chamberlain. However, their gentleman’s sweep in the first round of the playoffs and ability to push the Boston Celtics to seven games materialized them as perhaps a better team than everyone thought.

Philly looked better to start the year, but still not overwhelmingly dominant – it wasn’t until a shocking hot streak after the All-Star Game that they began to push for the NBA‘s best record. They went on a 30-10 run to close the year, including eleven consecutive victories in the month of March.

Having such a composed finish won them the Eastern Division first seed and instant homecourt, privileges traditionally associated with the Celtics.

Score On, Score On

Wilt Chamberlain became the league’s all-time leading scorer this year, eclipsing the 20,000 mark and taking over the now-retired Bob Pettit’s place. The center did this in spite of averaging a career low in points and high in assists – his offensive value was not only irreplaceable, but malleable.

Standout Players

Wilt Chamberlain

Now surrounded by an improved Philly team, Chamberlain continued to dominate. He won his seventh straight scoring title, led in rebounding again after losing the crown for a couple years, and averaged career highs in assists and efficiency. The 76ers finished with the number one seed in the East, usurping the Celtics for the first time in a decade – this won Chamberlain his second M.V.P.

Jerry West

With Elgin Baylor producing the worst year of his career yet, West had to continue growing. He delivered career highs in points and assists, also appearing in all but one game. This was his first season being voted as the runner-up for M.V.P.

Oscar Robertson

Robertson’s days of nearly averaging a triple double were over – teammate Jerry Lucas ate up the boards, dropping his average to 7.7. That meant nothing to the legendary guard, who still managed to impact winning at a high level – the Royals snagged their fifth straight forty-win campaign.

Rick Barry

The eventual Rookie of the Year embodied potential from the get go. Barry’s offensive game was mesmerizing, and also clearly beneficial – the Warriors improved by eighteen games and were only a single match short of a playoff berth. The loss of Wilt still lingered in The Bay, but fans had someone new to bet on.

Bill Russell

For the first time since 1958, Russell wasn’t much of an M.V.P. candidate. He hit career lows in scoring and efficiency, and gave up the rebounding title to rival Wilt Chamberlain after two straight years of winning it. Despite this, the Celtics remained a threat – they finished with the second best record in the NBA and still posted the best defense.

Jerry Lucas

Cincinnati continued to depend on Lucas more, with him averaging his highest numbers in minutes and field goal attempts to date. This demand tanked his efficiency a bit, but he was still unequivocally the best forward in the NBA. He joined Chamberlain, Barry, Walt Bellamy, and Zelmo Beaty as a special group to finish top ten in both points and rebounds per game.

Around the League

Team Standings

Notes
An asterisk (*) indicates that the team qualified for the playoffs.

Eastern DivisionWLWestern DivisionWL
Philadelphia 76ers*5525Los Angeles Lakers*4535
Boston Celtics*5426Baltimore Bullets*3842
Cincinnati Royals*4535St. Louis Hawks*3644
New York Knicks3050San Francisco Warriors3545
Detroit Pistons2258

Fun Facts

  • For the first time since 1956, a team besides the Boston Celtics led the league in record.
  • In reference to the late-fifties, the Western Division was quite awful – the Los Angeles Lakers were the only winning team in it.
  • The New York Knicks experienced growing pains – the arrival of Walt Bellamy mid-season gave them some helpful depth at the center position, but disrupted the development of sophomore Willis Reed.
    • They also finished with the worst defense in the league – a strange quirk for such a strong frontcourt on paper.

Notable Movement

Key

The player stats listed are based on their last tenure, whether it be with their former team or the previous season.
Name(s) under the “Top Draft Picks” section with a plus (+) opted to play in another league instead of the NBA this season.
Name(s) under the “Top Draft Picks” section with an asterisk (*) were selected with a territorial draft pick.
p – points
r – rebounds
a – assists

Top Draft Picks

#TeamPlayer
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10		San Francisco Warriors
New York Knicks
Detroit Pistons
San Francisco Warriors
New York Knicks
Baltimore Bullets
Philadelphia 76ers
St. Louis Hawks
Cincinnati Royals
Los Angeles Lakers		Fred Hetzel
Bill Bradley* +
Bill Buntin*
Rick Barry
Dave Stallworth
Jerry Sloan
Billy Cunningham
Jim Washington
Nate Bowman +
Gail Goodrich*

Players

DatePlayerTeamActionDestinationStats
November 2, 1965Walt BellamyBaltimore BulletsTradedNew York Knicks(19p/12.8r/2.3a)
November 2, 1965Johnny GreenNew York KnicksTradedBaltimore Bullets(14.4p/10.6r/1.6a)

Other Personnel

DatePersonTeamActionStats
November 29, 1965Coach Harry GallatinNew York KnicksFiredRecord: 6-15
November 29, 1965Coach Dick McGuireNew York KnicksHiredRecord: 24-35
March 22, 1966Coach Alex HannumSan Francisco WarriorsFiredRecord: 35-45
March 22, 1966Coach Bill SharmanSan Francisco WarriorsHiredRecord: n/a
April 18, 1966Coach Red AuerbachBoston CelticsExpected to retireRecord: 54-26
April 18, 1966Player-coach Bill RussellBoston CelticsHired Record: n/a
April 28, 1966Coach Paul SeymourBaltimore BulletsFiredRecord: 38-42
April 28, 1966Coach Mike FarmerBaltimore BulletsHired Record: n/a

Retirements

PlayerTeam(s)Notable Accomplishments
Tom HeinsohnBoston Celtics6x Champion
4x All-NBA
6x All-Star
1957 Rookie of the Year
Bob PettitSt. Louis Hawks1x Champion
2x MVP
11x All-NBA
11x All-Star
4x All-Star Game MVP
1955 Rookie of the Year
2x Scoring Leader
1x Rebounds Leader

League Leaders

If a stat is not listed, it was not recorded at the time. As time goes on, this section will begin to include steals per game, blocks per game, etc.

Key

PPG – points per game
RPG – rebounds per game
APG – assists per game
FG% – field goal percentage (percentage of shots that hit)
FT% – free throw percentage (percentage of foul shots that hit)

StatLeaders
PPGWilt Chamberlain (33.5)
Jerry West (31.3)
Oscar Robertson (31.3)
Rick Barry (25.7)
Sam Jones (23.5)
RPGWilt Chamberlain (24.6)
Bill Russell (22.8)
Jerry Lucas (21.1)
Nate Thurmond (18)
Walt Bellamy (15.7)
APGOscar Robertson (11.1)
Guy Rodgers (10.7)
K.C. Jones (6.3)
Lenny Wilkens (6.2)
Jerry West (6.1)
FG%Wilt Chamberlain (54%)
Johnny Green (53%)
Walt Bellamy (50%)
Al Attles (50%)
Happy Hairston (48%)
FT%Larry Siegfried (88%)
Rick Barry (86%)
Howard Komives (86%)
Jerry West (86%)
Adrian Smith (85%)

Playoffs

Semifinals

East / Boston Celtics beat Cincinnati Royals, 3-2
For the first time under Bill Russell’s tenure, the Celtics had to play in the semifinals. Due to clinching the first seed for the past nine seasons, they always got a “bye” and were to be met in the second round – this time, there was more heavy lifting to do.

Cincinnati brought forth an upset in Game 1, boasting a road win behind the seventy-three combined points of their All-Stars. Game 2 was a duel between Oscar Robertson and Sam Jones that featured well over thirty points from both – this evened the series, only for the two teams to continue swapping victories until the tiebreaker.

Boston locked in for Game 5, limiting their rotation to seven players and seeing quality play from all of them. Bill Russell unsurprisingly put up a great performance, posting a triple-double with thirty-one rebounds – this sent the Royals home in the opening series for the second straight year.
West / St. Louis Hawks beat Baltimore Bullets, 3-0
A two-point loss at home was an instant demotivator for Baltimore, who narrowly struggled despite shooting better from the field than St. Louis. Their rim protection was much weaker with Walt Bellamy gone, which excited talented Hawks scorers such as Lenny Wilkens and Joe Caldwell. However, a second straight defeat confirmed that the Bullets were ill-prepared for the playoffs – despite their excellent shot selection, they could not draw fouls nearly as well as their opponent.

A eventual sweep from the Hawks was unsurprising, given they hosted Game 3 – their offense was thriving, and the retirement of Bob Pettit began to appear less destructive by the day.

Division Finals

East / Boston Celtics beat Philadelphia 76ers, 4-1
For the first time since they began winning championships, Boston did not look like the favorites in the Eastern Division Finals. They finished below the 76ers in the regular season, and were now fighting an uphill battle due to homecourt disadvantage and wear-and-tear from Cincinnati.

All of that noise was non-existent to the reigning champions, who generated a blowout by nineteen points in enemy territory. Their depth was staggering, and the 76ers looked pitiful defensively. The second match was a repeat narrative – Philadelphia shot an embarrassing thirty-five percent from the field and gave up over one-hundred points. Wilt Chamberlain also got thoroughly outmatched by his long-time rival Bill Russell, who was one assist short of a triple-double.

The 76ers managed to win Game 3 thanks to much-improved shooting and a dominant Chamberlain outing, but their defense remained suspicious. The final two meetings were both victories by Boston – Chamberlain scored a pathetic fifteen points in Game 4, which left his team down 3-1. He responded with forty-six points and thirty-four rebounds in the succeeding win-or-go-home match, but his efforts arrived far too late – Boston completely contained the Philadelphia supporting cast, which ensured an upset series win.
West / Los Angeles Lakers beat St. Louis Hawks, 4-3
For the first time since 1963, the Lakers and Hawks went to war fighting for a Finals appearance. L.A. opened matters up wih two quick victories – Elgin Baylor looked much improved following a bad regular season, dropping a game-leading forty-two points in Game 2 and only being one assist short of a triple-double. The Hawks relaxed the momentum with a reactive win, largely led by power forward Bill Bridges.

The Lakers managed a road win to go up 3-1 on their competition, and looked prepared for a solid gentleman’s sweep. St. Louis had other ideas – to force a tiebreaker, they won consecutive high-stakes matches behind high efficiency, beautiful ball movement, and Lenny Wilkens’ first playoff triple-double in three years.

The Game 7 in California was a classic Lakers tale – Jerry West and Elgin Baylor were the game’s two highest scorers, combining for eighty-eight points and shutting down the aspirations of the Missouri veterans.

Finals

Boston Celtics beat Los Angeles Lakers, 4-3
Five total Finals matchups, four in the past five seasons. It was undeniable that the Lakers-Celtics rivalry was the greatest in NBA history at this point – however, the Celtics routinely owned their foes, which put a lot of pressure on L.A. to bring a championship to California.

A shocking opening victory was spearheaded by Jerry West and Elgin Baylor, torching Boston in spite of great showings from Bill Russell and Sam Jones. Auerbach’s defensive adjustments were monumental as always, holding the two to a combined thirty-one points two days later. The Celtics amassed consecutive wins en route to a 3-1 lead – Russell looked unstoppable, Jones got buckets on buckets, and Baylor had cooled off scoring-wise.

Los Angeles took a page out of the Hawks’ book afterwards, forcing a Game 7 thanks to improvement from Baylor and sustained dominance from West. Rookie Gail Goodrich also posted a hefty twenty-eight points in the sixth match to ward off defeat.

Game 7 featured immediate dominance from the Celtics, but the Lakers assembled a mid-game comeback that brought affairs down to the wire. They could not close things out, going down by a measly two points – West had the best Finals series of his career, but Baylor’s consistency looked like a legitimate long-term problem at this point.

Fighting against the odds, Boston clinched an eighth straight title – nobody knew when, or if, they would stop tormenting professional basketball.
The Boston Celtics win the 1966 NBA championship!

Awards

Notes
Name(s) under the “All-Stars” section with an asterisk (*) were listed as the MVP of the All-Star Game that year. Those with “(IR)” next to their name were chosen to replace an injured star.

Major Awards

Rookie of the YearMVPCoach of the Year
Rick BarryWilt ChamberlainDolph Schayes

All-NBA

All-NBA First TeamAll-NBA Second Team
Oscar Robertson
Jerry West
Rick Barry
Jerry Lucas
Wilt Chamberlain		Hal Greer
Sam Jones
John Havlicek
Gus Johnson
Bill Russell

All-Stars

Eastern All-StarsWestern All-Stars
Wilt Chamberlain
Hal Greer
John Havlicek
Sam Jones
Jerry Lucas
Willis Reed
Oscar Robertson
Bill Russell
Adrian Smith*
Chet Walker		Rick Barry
Zelmo Beaty
Dave DeBusschere
Bailey Howell
Rudy LaRusso
Eddie Miles
Don Ohl
Guy Rodgers
Nate Thurmond
Jerry West
East beats West, 137-94

All-Rookie

All-Rookie Team
Rick Barry
Billy Cunningham
Fred Hetzel
Dick Van Arsdale
Tom Van Arsdale

All-Time Championship Leaderboard

Notes
The Baltimore Bullets (1947-1954) won the championship in 1948, but are defunct. As a result, they are not listed.

TeamCountYears
Celtics91957, 1959
1960, 1961
1962, 1963
1964, 1965
1966
Lakers51949, 1950
1952, 1953
1954
Warriors21947, 1956
Royals11951
76ers11955
Hawks11958

The NBA Time Machine: 1963

Posted on by in Sports, The NBA Time Machine

Published December 26, 2022

The NBA Time Machine:
1963

The Bay

Room For Two?

After the ’62 season, investor Franklin Mieuli purchased majority shares of the Philadelphia Warriors and made the decision to relocate to California. He wanted to put a stop to the decline in fan attendance they received in their long-term home, which seemed ludicrous given the allure of Wilt Chamberlain. They settled in the San Francisco Bay Area, subsequently becoming the San Francisco Warriors.

They were the second team to be based in the The Golden State after the Los Angeles Lakers. Because of this extreme change of placement, they were moved to the NBA‘s Western Division – this was the first time a team had changed division since the Central Division was removed in 1951.

To maintain balance, the Ohio-based Cincinnati Royals switched places with the Warriors and made the Eastern Division their home. This put them in a competitive position, now head-to-head with the rising Syracuse Nationals and dynasty Boston Celtics.

Not everyone on the team was fond of the change – Paul Arizin took it as an opportunity to retire after a fruitful ten-year career, and Tom Gola insisted on being traded to the New York Knicks. This hurt the Warriors greatly, as they had now lost two perennial All-Stars. The offense was never more dependent on their former M.V.P., and their perimeter defense saw a laughable regression. Because of this, the franchise finished with a losing record for its first time since drafting Chamberlain.

Indecision

The Chicago Packers changed names to the Chicago Zephyrs and began playing in Chicago Coliseum. Due to sustained poor play during their inaugural year, they once again received good draft utilities and selected big man Bill McGill and eventual Rookie of the Year Terry Dischinger with two top ten picks.

Rookie Recognition

A new award was introduced – the All-Rookie Team. This was a parallel to the All-NBA Team, but exclusively for players in their first year – unlike All-NBA, it was not based on position whatsoever. This was the first newly implemented honor since the Most Valuable Player award in 1956.

Standout Players

Bill Russell

For the seventh season in a row, Russell’s Celtics were the number one ranked team in the NBA. He enjoyed his fourth M.V.P. award as a result – this made him the first player in league history to receive the honor for three consecutive years. Considering his continued leaps as a playmaker and acquiring of the All-Star Game MVP, it was safe to call this one of his best years yet.

Elgin Baylor

Now free of his military obligations, Baylor enjoyed a full eighty-game season and continued to leave his mark as a basketball elite. He hit new levels of efficiency, seemingly preferring precision to volume and improving his outside scoring.

Wilt Chamberlain

With Paul Arizin and Tom Gola gone, the Warriors looked shaky. They were more dependent on Wilt than ever, and he did his job through leading the league in scoring and rebounding once again. Despite this, the newly relocated franchise failed to exceed thirty-one wins.

Oscar Robertson

The Royals’ scoring continued to thrive behind Robertson’s genius playmaking. His numbers were less flashy than his sophomore year, but he shot over 50% for the first time in his career. He was the first – and at this point, only – guard to achieve such.

Bob Pettit

Now in his thirties, the two-time M.V.P. remained a consistent force. The Hawks returned to winning basketball, even with a declining Hagan – Pettit embraced the role of a high-usage first option, which was something he hadn’t done since 1957.

Jerry West

West enjoyed yet another phenomenal season before going down with a hamstring injury in the last couple months. Regardless, he was undoubtedly one of the most talented guards the league had seen – him and Baylor had transformed Los Angeles into a perennial contender.

Around the League

Team Standings

Notes
An asterisk (*) indicates that the team qualified for the playoffs.

Eastern DivisionWLWestern DivisionWL
Boston Celtics*5822Los Angeles Lakers*5327
Syracuse Nationals*4832St. Louis Hawks*4832
Cincinnati Royals*4238Detroit Pistons*3446
New York Knicks2159San Francisco Warriors3149
Chicago Zephyrs2555

Fun Facts

  • The Boston Celtics and Los Angeles Lakers seemed prepared to embrace a new rivalry with one another.
    • Besides meeting in the Finals twice, they also led their respective divisions for the second consecutive year.
  • Even with franchise great Dolph Schayes long past his best days, the Syracuse Nationals feasted and bore a top-tier offense.
    • Hal Greer and sophomore Lee Shaffer were the primary contributors – Greer had become the best shooting guard in the NBA.
  • While still terrible, the Chicago Zephyrs were actually not the worst team around – that title went to the New York Knicks, who lacked dominance on either end of the floor.
    • This delayed the Knicks’ aspirations to have a winning season during the 60’s decade.
  • The San Francisco Warriors‘ move to California was tough on morale – their thirty-one wins was the lowest total for the franchise since 1954.
  • A true rarity, the St. Louis Hawks produced a high seed despite playing with a noticeably slow pace.
    • This highlighted the consistency of their veterans, who kept the team level-headed and committed to reversing their errors from the previous season.

Notable Movement

Key

The player stats listed are based on their last tenure, whether it be with their former team or the previous season.
Name(s) under the “Top Draft Picks” section with a plus (+) opted to play in another league instead of the NBA this season.
Name(s) under the “Top Draft Picks” section with an asterisk (*) were selected with a territorial draft pick.
p – points
r – rebounds
a – assists

Top Draft Picks

#TeamPlayer
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10		Chicago Zephyrs
New York Knicks
St. Louis Hawks
Detroit Pistons
Syracuse Nationals
Cincinnati Royals
San Francisco Warriors
Los Angeles Lakers
Boston Celtics
Chicago Zephyrs		Bill McGill
Paul Hogue
Zelmo Beaty
Dave DeBusschere*
Len Chappell
Jerry Lucas*
Wayne Hightower
Leroy Ellis
John Havlicek
Terry Dischinger

Players

DatePlayerTeamActionDestinationStats
June 1962Clyde LovelletteSt. Louis HawksTradedBoston Celtics(20.9p/8.8r/1.7a)
August 29, 1962Gene ShueDetroit PistonsTradedNew York Knicks(19p/4.7r/5.8a)
December 5, 1962Willie NaullsNew York KnicksTradedSan Francisco Warriors(16.9p/8.7r/1.9a)
December 5, 1962Tom GolaSan Francisco WarriorsTradedNew York Knicks(13p/7r/3.5a)

Other Personnel

DatePersonTeamActionStats
June 12, 1962Coach Jim PollardChicago PackersFiredRecord: 18-62
July 24, 1962Coach Jack McMahonChicago ZephyrsHiredRecord: 12-26
December 28, 1962Coach Slick LeonardChicago ZephyrsHiredRecord: 13-29
April 13, 1963Coach Dick McGuireDetroit PistonsResignedRecord: 34-46

Retirements

PlayerTeam(s)Notable Accomplishments
Paul ArizinPhiladelphia Warriors1x Champion
4x All-NBA
10x All-Star
1x All-Star Game MVP
2x Scoring Leader
Carl BraunNew York Knicks
Boston Celtics		1x Champion
2x All-Team
5x All-Star
Ray FelixBaltimore Bullets
New York Knicks
Los Angeles Lakers		1x All-Star
1954 Rookie of the Year
Larry FoustFort Wayne Pistons
Minneapolis Lakers
St. Louis Hawks		2x All-NBA
8x All-Star
1x Rebounds Leader

League Leaders

If a stat is not listed, it was not recorded at the time. As time goes on, this section will begin to include steals per game, blocks per game, etc.

Key

PPG – points per game
RPG – rebounds per game
APG – assists per game
FG% – field goal percentage (percentage of shots that hit)
FT% – free throw percentage (percentage of foul shots that hit)

StatLeaders
PPGWilt Chamberlain (44.8)
Elgin Baylor (34)
Bob Pettit (28.4)
Oscar Robertson (28.3)
Walt Bellamy (27.9)
RPGWilt Chamberlain (24.3)
Bill Russell (23.6)
Walt Bellamy (16.4)
Bob Pettit (15.1)
Elgin Baylor (14.3)
APGGuy Rodgers (10.4)
Oscar Robertson (9.5)
Bob Cousy (6.8)
Si Green (5.8)
Lenny Wilkens (5.1)
FG%Wilt Chamberlain (52%)
Walt Bellamy (52%)
Oscar Robertson (51%)
Bailey Howell (51%)
Terry Dischinger (51%)
FT%Larry Costello (88%)
Richie Guerin (84%)
Elgin Baylor (83%)
Tom Heinsohn (83%)
Hal Greer (83%)

Playoffs

Semifinals

East / Cincinnati Royals beat Syracuse Nationals, 3-2
The first playoff series between these two franchises was a huge toss-up. The Nationals were a better-constructed squad, but Cincinnati had a superstar power in Oscar Robertson that couldn’t be doubted.

Hal Greer set the tone in Game 1 with thirty-two points and a win, followed by a blowout from Cincinnati two days later. Robertson delivered a forty-one point triple double and Twyman dropped thirty-one of his own. The two teams continued to trade wins until a tiebreaker was forced, set to happen in Syracuse.

The Nationals ended up falling apart on their own home court, unable to limit Robertson who delivered yet another triple double. His supporting cast all played great as well, leaving the Nationals hopeless – even with Lee Shaffer playing his heart out with forty-five points. Greer struggled all night, which rendered a Nationals win impossible.
West / St. Louis Hawks beat Detroit Pistons, 3-1
St. Louis returned to the post-season like they never left, handing the Pistons two quick blowout losses. Bob Pettit immediately left a mark with seventy-three points in the first two games, and Cliff Hagan stepped up in the first as well.

The Pistons managed to avoid a sweep thanks to double-digit scoring from six of their players in Game 3 – conversely, Pettit carried the Hawks’ scoring tremendously. Not interested in an upset, he followed up with a thirty-five point, thirteen rebound game to finish the series on a victory. The only great performance from Detroit that night was of Don Ohl, who surely resembled a star player in his third season.

Division Finals

East / Boston Celtics beat Cincinnati Royals, 4-3
As a member of the Eastern Division, the Royals were required to prepare for war with the Celtics. It was a battle of offense vs. defense, and the latter’s representatives were looking to win their fifth straight championship.

The Royals shocked fans at the Garden with an upset win in Game 1, mounting a comeback behind Robertson’s heroics. The Celtics responded through limiting his supporting cast in a Game 2 victory, given he could not be stopped. It can be assumed head coach Charles Wolf then gave Cincinnati a long talk afterwards, as the entire – yes, the entire – team scored in double digits to take a 2-1 lead shortly after.

Boston managed to take the next two games to go up 3-2 and possibly finish business on the road. They failed to accomplish such, as the Royals’ offense was just too red-hot to contain. The anticipated Game 7 ended up being a guard battle for the ages, with Cincinnati’s Oscar Robertson scoring forty-three points and Boston’s Sam Jones scoring forty-seven. The Celtics eventually emerged victorious, creating a gap in the third quarter that their opponents could not recover from.
West / Los Angeles Lakers beat St. Louis Hawks, 4-3
Home court played a major role in this series, with both teams only grabbing wins on their turf the entire way.

The stars contributed as necessary in practically every game, with Cliff Hagan looking relatively good in particular. After a poor regular season, Hawks fans were warmed by his upped production. On the contrary, Jerry West showed no signs of slowing down after his seven-week absence from the game – both sides were locked in.

After nonstop win-swapping, Game 5 was the momentum changer for the matchup. Los Angeles stomped on their opponents in a blowout where none of the opposition could buy a bucket. Jerry West and Elgin Baylor cruised the entire time, whereas St. Louis’ two All-Stars combined for only nineteen points – and almost all were produced from free throws.

St. Louis forced Game 7 behind better games from Pettit and Hagan, but it was to no avail – the one-two punch of Baylor and West could not be held back from another trip to the Finals.

Finals

Boston Celtics beat Los Angeles Lakers, 4-2
An unsurprising rematch between these two storied franchises had incredibly high stakes. If the Celtics won the championship, they would surpass the Lakers for the most trophies in league history – the opposite would protect the California team’s Minneapolis-born legacy.

Boston jumped to a quick 2-0 lead, playing effective defense and riding off Sam Jones’ bucket-getting ability. The two-guard was looking excellent in this year’s playoffs, silently becoming their top scoring threat. West and Baylor had enough and defended their court with a combined seventy points the next day, feeling revitalized back in California.

West struggled heavily in a match that would eventually result in L.A. going down 1-3, while Tom Heinsohn delivered a beefy thirty-five points. The Lakers prolonged the series thanks to dominance from their superstars once more, now hoping to schedule a tiebreaker against the odds.

Ultimately, they could not overcome their demons – outscored by sixteen points in the second quarter, L.A. had to play catch-up throughout Game 6 and never made their mark. The Celtics saw victory behind a balanced team win, and once again rose to the top of the NBA. They had now joined the New York Yankees and Montreal Canadiens as the only major American sports franchises to grab five championships in a row.
The Boston Celtics win the 1963 NBA championship!

Awards

Notes
Name(s) under the “All-Stars” section with an asterisk (*) were listed as the MVP of the All-Star Game that year. Those with “(IR)” next to their name were chosen to replace an injured star.

Major Awards

Rookie of the YearMVP
Terry DischingerBill Russell

All-NBA

All-NBA First TeamAll-NBA Second Team
Oscar Robertson
Jerry West
Elgin Baylor
Bob Pettit
Bill Russell		Bob Cousy
Hal Greer
Bailey Howell
Tom Heinsohn
Wilt Chamberlain

All-Stars

Eastern All-StarsWestern All-Stars
Bob Cousy
Wayne Embry
Tom Gola
Johnny Green
Hal Greer
Richie Guerin
Tom Heinsohn
Red Kerr
Oscar Robertson
Bill Russell*
Lee Shaffer
Jack Twyman		Elgin Baylor
Walt Bellamy
Wilt Chamberlain
Terry Dischinger
Bailey Howell
Rudy LaRusso
Tom Meschery
Don Ohl
Bob Pettit
Guy Rodgers
Jerry West
Lenny Wilkens
East beats West, 115-108

All-Rookie

All-Rookie Team
Zelmo Beaty
Dave DeBusschere
Terry Dischinger
John Havlicek
Chet Walker

All-Time Championship Leaderboard

Notes
The Baltimore Bullets (1947-1954) won the championship in 1948, but are defunct. As a result, they are not listed.

TeamCountYears
Celtics61957, 1959
1960, 1961
1962, 1963
Lakers51949, 1950
1952, 1953
1954
Warriors21947, 1956
Royals11951
Nationals11955
Hawks11958

The NBA Time Machine: 1960

Posted on by in Sports, The NBA Time Machine

Published December 16, 2022

The NBA Time Machine:
1960

Dippy

Change In Philadelphia

Dating back to 1955, the NBA allowed a “territorial draft” rule – teams could exchange a first-round pick for the ability to claim a local college player from their area. The Philadelphia Warriors had their eyes on rising basketball phenomenon Wilt Chamberlain – while he went to the University of Kansas, Philadelphia argued he should be eligible due to playing there in high school. Since there was no team that could directly tie itself to Kansas, the league obliged and let the wilting Warriors have their way.

Under the guidance of former franchise star Neil Johnston – who retired the year prior due to injuries – the Warriors improved by seventeen games and were the best team in the East behind the defending champion Boston Celtics. Chamberlain’s impact was immediate – although the team ranked amongst the worst offenses, they still won games off of his unstoppable prowess on both ends. Not much was needed from the team scoring-wise besides big games from him, Paul Arizin, and Tom Gola.

Offense Wins Games

With the turn of the decade, the NBA‘s playing habits saw a major overhaul. Scoring never held more importance – the league-wide field goal percentage was above 40% for the first time, per game scoring went up by seven points, and assists numbers rose again after a few down years.

Speaking of Games…

The NBA schedule was slightly expanded, going from seventy-two games to seventy-five.

Coaching Habits

Something peculiar about the league in this period was that coaching personnel were almost always deeply tied to the team already. Seven of the eight coaches by the end of the season were either player-coaches or former players for their franchise – this included Neil Johnston, Paul Seymour, Carl Braun, Ed Macauley, Dick McGuire, Jim Pollard, and Tom Marshall. Marshall was the only non-former All-Star of the bunch.

The Plane Emergency

Mere days before the All-Star Game, the Minneapolis Lakers were headed home from a loss against the St. Louis Hawks. On the way, the plane lost nearly all functionality and it was reported that only the generator worked. The pilots, who had to open windows to manually remove snow, had no clue where they were going and suffered from frostbite.

The Lakers players had mixed reactions to the emergency, but all of them surely felt relief when the plane managed to land safely in an Iowa field. The belief was that had they landed any several yards further, the plane would have went into a gorge and exploded – thankfully, the world did not have to mourn the loss of so many lives.

Standout Players

Wilt Chamberlain

Chamberlain debuted looking like the best athlete the league has ever seen. He became the first player to average over thirty points, twenty-five rebounds, and forty-five minutes, which was a testament to his ridiculous conditioning. Lifting Philadelphia to relevance again also made him the favorite for the M.V.P. award, making him the first rookie to win it.

Bill Russell

Although he had a new rival big man in town, Russell remained the league’s best winner. He achieved career high averages in every major statistic and led the Celtics to their second-straight season over fifty wins.

Bob Pettit

Pettit and his Hawks terrorized the Western Division once again, thanks to the power forward’s continued growth as a player. Although he was getting to the line less, he began to embrace playmaking more and increased his minutes even further.

Bob Cousy

Despite being in his thirties at this point, Cousy’s offense never wavered. He adjusted to the new pace of the league well, becoming the first player in NBA history to average over nine assists. The Celtics may have been a defense-first squad, but their offensive successes were still heavily dependent on Cousy’s presence.

Dolph Schayes

The ’59 season was not one to remember for Syracuse, but they bounced back nicely behind Dolph Schayes’ leadership. He was also the first of many to eclipse 15,000 points, further cementing his place as the all-time leading scorer.

Elgin Baylor

The Lakers weren’t as magical in Baylor’s sophomore season, but he continued to improve. His scoring hit new heights, which was largely thanks to his contact-drawing talents. Minneapolis remained grateful for his presence, staying afloat another year as a franchise after nearly going bankrupt two seasons ago.

Around the League

Team Standings

Notes
An asterisk (*) indicates that the team qualified for the playoffs.

Eastern DivisionWLWestern DivisionWL
Boston Celtics*5916St. Louis Hawks*4629
Philadelphia Warriors*4926Detroit Pistons*3045
Syracuse Nationals*4530Minneapolis Lakers*2550
New York Knicks2748Cincinnati Royals1956

Fun Facts

  • This season marked three straight years of no Western Division teams besides the St. Louis Hawks having a positive win-loss record.
  • The Boston Celtics joined the ’47 Washington Capitols and ’50 Syracuse Nationals as the only NBA teams to have a win-loss percentage higher than .750.
    • However, Boston did so with a much larger slew of games – they played seventy-five compared to the Nationals’ sixty-four and the Capitols’ sixty.
  • Having good rim protection became an increasing necessity to be a premier center – the top two defenses being the Boston Celtics and Syracuse Nationals were proof.
    • This is further supported when considering these two teams were also the best in the NBA.
  • The Minneapolis Lakers already had a rather shaky offensive foundation last season, but they were outright exposed this year – ranking eighth in offense and sixth in overall record was not a good look.

Notable Movement

Key

The player stats listed are based on their last tenure, whether it be with their former team or the previous season.
Name(s) under the “Top Draft Picks” section with a plus (+) opted to play in another league instead of the NBA this season.
Name(s) under the “Top Draft Picks” section with an asterisk (*) were selected with a territorial draft pick.
p – points
r – rebounds
a – assists

Top Draft Picks

#TeamPlayer
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10		Cincinnati Royals
Detroit Pistons
Philadelphia Warriors
Minneapolis Lakers
Syracuse Nationals
New York Knicks
St. Louis Hawks
Boston Celtics
Detroit Pistons
Detroit Pistons		Bob Boozer +
Bailey Howell
Wilt Chamberlain*
Tom Hawkins
Dick Barnett
Johnny Green
Bob Ferry*
John Richter
Tom Robitaille +
Don Goldstein

Players

DatePlayerTeamActionDestinationStats
January 24, 1960Dick GarmakerMinneapolis LakersTradedNew York Knicks(11.7p/4.3r/3a)
February 1, 1960Larry FoustMinneapolis LakersTradedSt. Louis Hawks(13.3p/9.3r/1.6a)

Other Personnel

DatePersonTeamActionStats
August 24, 1959Coach Neil JohnstonPhiladelphia WarriorsHiredRecord: 46-29
December 18, 1959Coach Andrew LevaneNew York KnicksResigned