Golden State Warriors
Series Flow
0
Wins
0
Losses
Regular Season
45–27
Win–Loss
Playoff Record
7–4
Win–Loss
Finals
0–0
vs Fort Wayne Pistons
Finals MVP
Arizin
Paul
Golden State Warriors
45–27Fort Wayne Pistons
37–35The Fort Wayne Pistons — the franchise that would eventually become the Detroit Pistons — were one of the NBA's most competitive teams of the 1950s. They reached the Finals in 1956 with a strong defensive scheme, but Paul Arizin and Neil Johnston provided an offensive combination that Fort Wayne's system could not adequately guard across five games.
Paul Arizin
#11 · Forward
24.2
PPG
8.5
RPG
Paul "Pitchin' Paul" Arizin was one of the most complete forwards of the NBA's early era — a player whose jump shot, physicality, and competitive edge made him virtually unguardable over a full playoff run. In the 1956 Finals, Arizin was the Warriors' offensive engine, averaging over 24 points per game and providing the interior presence that Fort Wayne's defense could not contain. His performance cemented his place as one of the greatest players in Warriors franchise history.
Led the Warriors to their second NBA championship, nine years after the franchise's first
Averaged 24.2 points per game in the Finals against a Fort Wayne defense that had limited opponents all season
One of two Warriors players to earn NBA All-Star selection ten times in his career
Inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1978 — a recognition of his sustained excellence across a decade of elite play
18.7
PPG
12.2
RPG
The Warriors' dominant interior presence who led the NBA in scoring three consecutive seasons (1953–55). Johnston provided the inside-out threat that made Philadelphia's offense so difficult to guard in the Finals.
3x NBA scoring champion who formed the lethal inside-outside partnership with Arizin
Among the league's premier centers of the early 1950s — a physically dominant presence inside
The Fort Wayne Pistons — the franchise that would eventually become the Detroit Pistons — were one of the NBA's most competitive teams of the 1950s. They reached the Finals in 1956 with a strong defensive scheme, but Paul Arizin and Neil Johnston provided an offensive combination that Fort Wayne's system could not adequately guard across five games.
George Yardley
#10 · Forward
17.5
PPG
Fort Wayne's leading scorer and future Hall of Famer who would become the first player in NBA history to score 2,000 points in a season the following year.
Philadelphia Warriors
Won the franchise's second NBA championship, cementing Philadelphia's place as one of the sport's early dynasties.
Paul Arizin
Delivered one of the most dominant individual Finals performances of the early NBA era, averaging 24+ PPG.
George Senesky
Coached the Warriors to the championship in a season where Philadelphia won 45 regular-season games — the franchise's best record to that point.
The 1956 championship came at a pivotal moment in NBA history — two years before Wilt Chamberlain would join the franchise and three years before the league's expansion would begin reshaping the sport. Paul Arizin and Neil Johnston represented the Warriors' last great partnership before the Chamberlain era transformed everything.
Fort Wayne's loss signaled the end of an era for small-market NBA franchises. The Pistons would relocate to Detroit the following season, and the Fort Wayne era of professional basketball concluded with the Warriors' championship victory.
Arizin is one of the most underappreciated great players in NBA history. His combination of scoring, athleticism, and durability — including a two-year absence for military service in the Korean War that interrupted his career at its peak — produced a Hall of Fame resume that deserves far more contemporary recognition.
Nine years after their first championship, the Philadelphia Warriors returned to the top of the NBA with a different star but the same franchise formula: a dominant forward capable of scoring from anywhere, an interior partner who commanded defensive attention, and a team built on professional discipline under a capable coach.
Paul Arizin was the centerpiece of the 1956 championship — a player whose jump shot, physical style, and competitive ferocity had made him one of the most respected forwards in the league for years. In the Finals against Fort Wayne, Arizin was at his best: over 24 points per game in five games, with Neil Johnston providing the interior counterweight that made the Warriors' offense functionally unstoppable.
The 4-1 series victory was never in serious doubt once the Warriors established their rhythm. Fort Wayne had an excellent defensive system but limited offensive weapons that could match Arizin's scoring. The Warriors took control early in the series and never relinquished it.
The 1956 championship marked the end of the franchise's Philadelphia era's first great chapter. Three years later, Wilt Chamberlain would arrive and rewrite every record book that existed. But before The Dipper came "Pitchin' Paul" Arizin — the original Warriors superstar whose championship legacy deserves to stand alongside any name in franchise history.
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