1962 NBA playoffs

Sports tournament August 2023 NBA playoffs 1962 1961–62 March 16–April 18, 1962 6 Boston Celtics 5 Los Angeles Lakers Scoring leader(s) Elgin Baylor (Lakers) 38.6 PPG Detroit Pistons Philadelphia Warriors 1961 1963 The 1962 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1961-62 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Division champion Boston Celtics defeating the Western Division champion Los Angeles Lakers 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals. The Celtics won their 4th straight title to become the first (and as of 2025, only) NBA team to do so. Boston's Game 7 victory occurred in OT, with Bill Russell tying his own Finals record with 40 rebounds. This was the second NBA Finals played between the Celtics and Lakers, but it was the first one the Lakers played in since they moved to Los Angeles. Though the NBA has existed since 1947, this is the earliest NBA Finals played between two teams that still reside in their present (2022) locations. Bracket Division Semifinals Division Finals NBA Finals Eastern Division Western Division E3 Syracuse 2 E2 Philadelphia 3 W3 Detroit 3 W2 Cincinnati 1 E1 Boston* 4 E2 Philadelphia 3 W1 Los Angeles* 4 W3 Detroit 2 E1 Boston* 4 W1 Los Angeles* 3* Division winner Bold Series winner Italic Team with home-court advantage in NBA Finals Division Semifinals Eastern Division Semifinals (2) Philadelphia Warriors vs. (3) Syracuse Nationals #eee March 16 Boxscore Syracuse Nationals 103 Philadelphia Warriors 110 21–26 22–29 28–35 32–20 Larry Costello 23 Red Kerr 15 Bianchi, Shaffer 4 each Paul Arizin 43 Wilt Chamberlain 25 Guy Rodgers 8 Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 6,937 Philadelphia leads series, 1–0 March 18 Boxscore Philadelphia Warriors 97 Syracuse Nationals 82 26–27 28–16 22–18 21–21 Wilt Chamberlain 28 Wilt Chamberlain 26 Wilt Chamberlain 4 Red Kerr 18 Lee Shaffer 13 Larry Costello 5 Onondaga War Memorial, Syracuse, New York 5,250 Philadelphia leads series, 2–0 #eee March 19 Boxscore Syracuse Nationals 101 Philadelphia Warriors 100 27–27 34–35 19–24 21–14 Lee Shaffer 30 Red Kerr 16 Larry Costello 10 Wilt Chamberlain 40 Wilt Chamberlain 25 Guy Rodgers 9 Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 5,328 Philadelphia leads series, 2–1 March 20 Boxscore Philadelphia Warriors 99 Syracuse Nationals 106 24–30 24–28 24–25 27–23 Wilt Chamberlain 29 Wilt Chamberlain 20 Guy Rodgers 7 Red Kerr 27 Red Kerr 22 Larry Costello 7 Onondaga War Memorial, Syracuse, New York Series tied, 2–2 #eee March 22 Boxscore Syracuse Nationals 104 Philadelphia Warriors 121 28–35 29–24 20–31 27–31 Lee Shaffer 30 Red Kerr 15 Al Bianchi 5 Wilt Chamberlain 56 Wilt Chamberlain 35 Guy Rodgers 10 Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 7,829 Philadelphia wins series, 3–2 This was the ninth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the 76ers/Nationals winning five of the first eight meetings. +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=GSW&opp_id=PHI&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Golden State Warriors versus Philadelphia 76ers (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021Philadelphia 76ers/ Syracuse Nationals leads 5–3 in all-time playoff series#fff 1950 Philadelphia Warriors 0 Syracuse Nationals 2 1950 Eastern Division Semifinals #fff 1951 Philadelphia Warriors 0 Syracuse Nationals 2 1951 Eastern Division Semifinals #fff 1952 Philadelphia Warriors 1 Syracuse Nationals 2 1952 Eastern Division Semifinals #fff 1956 Philadelphia Warriors 3 Syracuse Nationals 2 1956 Eastern Division Finals #fff 1957 Philadelphia Warriors 0 Syracuse Nationals 2 1957 Eastern Division Semifinals #fff 1958 Philadelphia Warriors 2 Syracuse Nationals 1 1958 Eastern Division Semifinals #fff 1960 Philadelphia Warriors 2 Syracuse Nationals 1 1960 Eastern Division Semifinals #fff 1961 Philadelphia Warriors 0 Syracuse Nationals 3 1961 Eastern Division Semifinals Western Division Semifinals (2) Cincinnati Royals vs. (3) Detroit Pistons #eee March 16 Boxscore Cincinnati Royals 122 Detroit Pistons 123 29–32 29–27 31–34 33–30 Bockhorn, Robertson 24 each Ray Scott 34 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan 4,121 Detroit leads series, 1–0 March 17 Boxscore Detroit Pistons 107 Cincinnati Royals 129 25–31 24–31 29–30 29–37 Ohl, Shue 18 each Oscar Robertson 33 Cincinnati Gardens, Cincinnati, Ohio 1,829 Series tied, 1–1 #eee March 18 Boxscore Cincinnati Royals 107 Detroit Pistons 118 25–19 24–29 32–39 26–31 Oscar Robertson 26 Bailey Howell 27 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan 3,147 Detroit leads series, 2–1 March 20 Boxscore Detroit Pistons 112 Cincinnati Royals 111 27–21 36–34 22–24 27–32 Don Ohl 33 Oscar Robertson 32 Cincinnati Gardens, Cincinnati, Ohio 3,336 Detroit wins series, 3–1 This was the seventh playoff meeting between these two teams, with both teams splitting the first six meetings. (It would also be Detroit's last playoff series victory for fourteen years.) +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=DET&opp_id=SAC&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Detroit Pistons versus Sacramento Kings (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021Tied 3–3 in all-time playoff series#fff 1950 Fort Wayne Pistons 2 Rochester Royals 0 1950 Central Division Semifinals #fff 1951 Fort Wayne Pistons 1 Rochester Royals 2 1951 Western Division Semifinals #fff 1952 Fort Wayne Pistons 0 Rochester Royals 2 1952 Western Division Semifinals #fff 1953 Fort Wayne Pistons 2 Rochester Royals 0 1953 Western Division Semifinals #fff 1954 Fort Wayne Pistons 0 Rochester Royals 2 1954 Western Division Round Robin Semifinals #fff 1958 Fort Wayne Pistons 2 Cincinnati Royals 0 1958 Western Division Semifinals Division Finals Eastern Division Finals (1) Boston Celtics vs. (2) Philadelphia Warriors #eee March 24 Boxscore Philadelphia Warriors 89 Boston Celtics 117 15–24 20–26 29–36 25–31 Wilt Chamberlain 33 Wilt Chamberlain 31 Chamberlain, Arizin 3 each Sam Jones 20 Bill Russell 30 Bob Cousy 8 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts 10,274 Boston leads series, 1–0 March 27 Boxscore Boston Celtics 106 Philadelphia Warriors 113 26–27 34–22 25–30 21–34 Tom Heinsohn 24 Bill Russell 20 Bill Russell 6 Wilt Chamberlain 42 Wilt Chamberlain 37 Guy Rodgers 10 Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Series tied, 1–1 #eee March 28 Boxscore Philadelphia Warriors 114 Boston Celtics 129 29–35 26–41 26–33 33–20 Wilt Chamberlain 35 Wilt Chamberlain 29 Wilt Chamberlain 6 Russell, Heinsohn 31 each Bill Russell 31 Bob Cousy 10 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts Boston leads series, 2–1 March 31 Boxscore Boston Celtics 106 Philadelphia Warriors 110 25–23 29–32 23–23 29–32 Bill Russell 31 Bill Russell 30 Bob Cousy 10 Wilt Chamberlain 41 Wilt Chamberlain 34 Guy Rodgers 10 Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Series tied, 2–2 #eee April 1 Boxscore Philadelphia Warriors 104 Boston Celtics 119 26–36 23–36 19–18 36–29 Wilt Chamberlain 30 Wilt Chamberlain 14 Guy Rodgers 9 Bill Russell 29 Bill Russell 26 Russell, S. Jones 7 each Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts Boston leads series, 3–2 April 3 Boxscore Boston Celtics 99 Philadelphia Warriors 109 22–34 30–28 26–25 21–22 Heinsohn, Cousy 22 each Bill Russell 22 Bob Cousy 12 Wilt Chamberlain 32 Wilt Chamberlain 21 Guy Rodgers 10 Philadelphia Civic Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Series tied, 3–3 #eee April 5 Boxscore Philadelphia Warriors 107 Boston Celtics 109 23–34 33–18 25–28 26–29 Tom Meschery 32 Wilt Chamberlain 22 Guy Rodgers 8 Sam Jones 28 Bill Russell 22 K. C. Jones 10 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts Boston wins series, 4–3 Paul Arizin's final NBA game; Sam Jones hits the series-winning shot with 2 seconds left. This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning the first two meetings. +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=BOS&opp_id=SAC&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Boston Celtics versus Golden State Warriors (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021Boston leads 2–0 in all-time playoff series#fff 1958 Boston Celtics 4 Philadelphia Warriors 1 1958 Eastern Division Finals #fff 1960 Boston Celtics 4 Philadelphia Warriors 2 1960 Eastern Division Finals Western Division Finals (1) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (3) Detroit Pistons #eee March 24 Boxscore Detroit Pistons 108 Los Angeles Lakers 132 27–28 31–39 30–32 20–33 Bailey Howell 27 Walter Dukes 12 Elgin Baylor 35 Elgin Baylor 17 Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California Los Angeles leads series, 1–0 March 25 Boxscore Detroit Pistons 112 Los Angeles Lakers 127 24–29 24–32 35–38 29–28 Don Ohl 33 Bailey Howell 13 Jerry West 40 West, Baylor 13 each Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California Los Angeles leads series, 2–0 #eee March 27 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 111 Detroit Pistons 106 35–24 26–29 26–27 24–26 Elgin Baylor 34 Elgin Baylor 17 Gene Shue 26 Walter Dukes 25 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan Los Angeles leads series, 3–0 March 29 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 117 Detroit Pistons 118 23–29 36–35 27–27 31–27 Elgin Baylor 45 Elgin Baylor 17 Bailey Howell 24 Ray Scott 23 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan Los Angeles leads series, 3–1 #eee March 31 Boxscore Detroit Pistons 132 Los Angeles Lakers 125 30–19 38–33 34–22 30–51 Willie Jones 27 Ray Scott 13 Elgin Baylor 37 Elgin Baylor 19 Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California Los Angeles leads series, 3–2 April 3 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 123 Detroit Pistons 117 31–27 33–18 33–39 26–33 Baylor, West 38 each Ray Scott 22 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan Los Angeles wins series, 4–2 This was the ninth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Lakers winning seven of the first eight meetings. +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=DET&opp_id=LAL&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Detroit Pistons versus Los Angeles Lakers (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021Los Angeles leads 7–1 in all-time playoff series#fff 1950 Fort Wayne Pistons 0 Minneapolis Lakers 2 1950 Central Division Finals #fff 1953 Fort Wayne Pistons 2 Minneapolis Lakers 3 1953 Western Division Finals #fff 1954 Fort Wayne Pistons 0 Minneapolis Lakers 2 1954 Western Division Round Robin Semifinals #fff 1955 Fort Wayne Pistons 3 Minneapolis Lakers 1 1955 Western Division Finals #fff 1957 Fort Wayne Pistons 0 Minneapolis Lakers 2 1957 Western Division Semifinals #fff 1959 Detroit Pistons 1 Minneapolis Lakers 2 1959 Western Division Semifinals #fff 1960 Detroit Pistons 0 Minneapolis Lakers 2 1960 Western Division Semifinals #fff 1961 Detroit Pistons 2 Los Angeles Lakers 3 1961 Western Division Semifinals NBA Finals: (E1) Boston Celtics vs. (W1) Los Angeles Lakers 1962 NBA Finals #eee April 7 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 108 Boston Celtics 122 32–29 20–31 22–35 34–27 Elgin Baylor 35 Elgin Baylor 17 Jerry West 4 Sam Jones 24 Bill Russell 28 Bob Cousy 7 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts 7,467 Boston leads series, 1–0 April 8 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 129 Boston Celtics 122 30–36 43–23 29–39 27–24 Jerry West 40 Jim Krebs 13 Frank Selvy 6 Tom Heinsohn 27 Bill Russell 23 Bob Cousy 11 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts 12,364 Series tied, 1–1 #eee April 10 Boxscore Boston Celtics 115 Los Angeles Lakers 117 27–24 23–30 28–33 37–30 Bill Russell 26 Bill Russell 32 Bob Cousy 8 Elgin Baylor 39 Elgin Baylor 23 Frank Selvy 5 Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California 15,180 Los Angeles leads series, 2–1 Jerry West steals Sam Jones' inbound pass and hit the game winning buzzer-beater. April 11 Boxscore Boston Celtics 115 Los Angeles Lakers 103 32–20 28–31 31–25 24–27 Bill Russell 21 Bill Russell 22 Bob Cousy 13 Elgin Baylor 38 Elgin Baylor 14 Elgin Baylor 6 Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California 15,104 Series tied, 2–2 #eee April 14 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 126 Boston Celtics 121 31–30 35–38 27–31 33–22 Elgin Baylor 61 Elgin Baylor 22 Frank Selvy 5 Tom Heinsohn 30 Bill Russell 29 Bob Cousy 10 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts 13,909 Los Angeles leads series, 3–2 Elgin Baylor's 61 points sets a Finals record for an individual scorer in a game. April 16 Boxscore Boston Celtics 119 Los Angeles Lakers 105 33–34 24–31 34–16 28–24 Sam Jones 35 Bill Russell 24 Bill Russell 10 West, Baylor 34 each Elgin Baylor 15 West, LaRusso 5 each Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena, Los Angeles, California 14,030 Series tied, 3–3 #eee April 18 Boxscore Los Angeles Lakers 107 Boston Celtics 110 OT 22–22 25–31 28–22 25–25 7–10 Elgin Baylor 41 Elgin Baylor 22 three players 4 each Bill Russell 30 Bill Russell 40 Bob Cousy 9 Boston Garden, Boston, Massachusetts 13,909 Boston wins series, 4–3 Frank Selvy misses the championship-winning shot in regulation; Bill Russell's 40 rebounds ties his own Finals record in a single game.basketball-reference.com Los Angeles Lakers at Boston Celtics Box Score, April 18, 1962 https://www.basketball-reference.com/boxscores/196204180BOS.html 2012-02-18 This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning first meeting when the Lakers were in Minneapolis. +Previous playoff serieshttps://www.basketball-reference.com/play-index/rivals.cgi?request=1&team_id=BOS&opp_id=LAL&is_playoffs=Y Team Rivalry Finder — Boston Celtics versus Los Angeles Lakers (Playoffs) basketball-reference.com February 19, 2021Boston leads 1–0 in all-time playoff series#fff 1959 Boston Celtics 4 Minneapolis Lakers 0 1959 NBA Finals References External links Basketball-Reference.com's 1962 NBA Playoffs page Category:NBA playoffs Playoffs