The 1957 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the NationalBasketball Association's 1956-57 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Division champion Boston Celtics defeating the Western Division champion St. Louis Hawks 4 games to 3 in the NBA Finals. It was the first title in Celtics history; as of 2017, they led the NBA in titles won with 17. The Celtics and Hawks met in 4 out of 5 NBA Finals from 1957–1961, with the Celtics winning 3 out of 4. While the Hawks' dominance of the Western Division was succeeded by the Los Angeles Lakers afterward, Boston missed the NBA Finals just once between 1957–1969, and win the NBA title in every year but two. In the division semifinals, the Philadelphia Warriors were swept by the Syracuse Nationals 2–0. This was the first time in NBA history that the defending champions were swept in the opening round. The next time the defending champions were swept in the opening round was in 2007. It was also the only time in which the playoff series leading to the Final resulted in sweeps.
Bracket
Western Division Tiebreakers
St. Louis Hawks vs. Minneapolis Lakers: Hawks win series 1-0
Game 1 @ St. Louis : St. Louis 114, Minneapolis 111
St. Louis Hawks vs. Fort Wayne Pistons: Hawks win series 1-0
Game 1 @ St. Louis : St. Louis 115, Fort Wayne 103
St. Louis defeats Fort Wayne & Minneapolis for #1 seed in West. Minneapolis gets #2 seed, Fort Wayne #3.
Western Division
Champion: St. Louis Hawks Division Semifinals St. Louis Hawks have division semifinals bye. Minneapolis Lakers vs. Fort Wayne Pistons: Lakers win series 2-0
Game 1 @ Minneapolis : Minneapolis 131, Fort Wayne 127
Game 2 @ Fort Wayne : Minneapolis 110, Fort Wayne 108
Last Playoff Meeting: 1955 NBA Western Division Finals Division Finals St. Louis Hawks vs. Minneapolis Lakers: Hawks win series 3-0
Game 1 @ St. Louis : St. Louis 118, Minneapolis 109
Game 2 @ St. Louis : St. Louis 106, Minneapolis 104
Game 3 @ Minneapolis : St. Louis 143, Minneapolis 135
Champion: Boston Celtics Division Semifinals Boston Celtics have division semifinals bye. Syracuse Nationals vs. Philadelphia Warriors: Nationals win series 2-0
Game 1 @ Philadelphia : Syracuse 103, Philadelphia 96
Game 2 @ Syracuse : Syracuse 91, Philadelphia 80
Last Playoff Meeting: 1956 NBA Eastern Division Finals Division Finals Boston Celtics vs. Syracuse Nationals: Celtics win series 3-0
