1982–83 NBA season

1982–83 NBA season
League	National Basketball Association
Sport	Basketball
TV partner/s	CBS, ESPN, USA
Regular season
Season MVP	Moses Malone (Philadelphia)
Top scorer	Alex English (Denver)
Playoffs
Eastern champions	Philadelphia 76ers
Eastern runners-up	Milwaukee Bucks
Western champions	Los Angeles Lakers
Western runners-up	San Antonio Spurs
Finals
Finals champions	Philadelphia 76ers
Runners-up	Los Angeles Lakers
Finals MVP	Moses Malone (Philadelphia)
NBA seasons
← 1981–82	1983–84 →

The 1982–83 NBA season was the 37th season of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The season ended with the Philadelphia 76ers winning the NBA championship, sweeping the Los Angeles Lakers 4 games to 0 in the NBA Finals in a rematch of the previous year's Finals.

Notable occurrences

• The 1983 NBA All-Star Game was played at the The Forum in Inglewood, California, with the East defeating the West 132-123. Julius Erving of the Philadelphia 76ers wins the game's MVP Award. It was at this game that R&B legend Marvin Gaye performed his famous rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner.
• This season marks the final season for Larry O'Brien as commissioner of the NBA. In honor of his long tenure, the NBA would rename its Championship trophy after him.
• The USA Network extended their cable deal with the NBA for another two years, and ESPN shared broadcast rights with them.
• The 76ers post a 12-1 record in the playoffs, a record for highest winning percentage in the postseason (since broken by the 2001 Los Angeles Lakers and 2017 Golden State Warriors)
• The Boston Celtics were swept for the first time in their playoff history at the hands of the Milwaukee Bucks in the Conference Semifinals of the 1983 NBA Playoffs. The Bucks swept the Celtics 4-0.

Final standings

Eastern Conference

Atlantic Division Team W L PCT. GB Philadelphia 76ers C 65 17 .793 - Boston Celtics 56 26 .683 9 New Jersey Nets 49 33 .598 16 New York Knicks 44 38 .537 21 Washington Bullets 42 40 .512 23

Central Division Team W L PCT. GB Milwaukee Bucks 51 31 .622 - Atlanta Hawks 43 39 .524 8 Detroit Pistons 37 45 .451 14 Chicago Bulls 28 54 .341 23 Cleveland Cavaliers 23 59 .280 28 Indiana Pacers 20 62 .244 31

Western Conference

Midwest Division Team W L PCT. GB San Antonio Spurs 53 29 .646 - Kansas City Kings 45 37 .549 8 Denver Nuggets 45 37 .549 8 Dallas Mavericks 38 44 .463 15 Utah Jazz 30 52 .366 23 Houston Rockets 14 68 .171 39

Pacific Division Team W L PCT. GB Los Angeles Lakers 58 24 .707 - Phoenix Suns 53 29 .646 5 Seattle SuperSonics 48 34 .585 10 Portland Trail Blazers 46 36 .561 12 Golden State Warriors 30 52 .366 28 San Diego Clippers 25 57 .305 33

C - NBA Champions

Statistics leaders

Category	Player	Team	Stat
Points per game	Alex English	Denver Nuggets	28.4
Rebounds per game	Moses Malone	Philadelphia 76ers	15.3
Assists per game	Magic Johnson	Los Angeles Lakers	10.5
Steals per game	Micheal Ray Richardson	Golden State Warriors	2.84
Blocks per game	Tree Rollins	Atlanta Hawks	4.3
FG%	Artis Gilmore	San Antonio Spurs	62.6
FT%	Calvin Murphy	Houston Rockets	92.0
3FG%	Mike Dunleavy	San Antonio Spurs	34.5

NBA awards

• Most Valuable Player: Moses Malone, Philadelphia 76ers
• Rookie of the Year: Terry Cummings, San Diego Clippers
• Defensive Player of the Year: Sidney Moncrief, Milwaukee Bucks
• Sixth Man of the Year: Bobby Jones, Philadelphia 76ers
• Coach of the Year: Don Nelson, Milwaukee Bucks
• All–NBA First Team:
  • Larry Bird, Boston Celtics
  • Sidney Moncrief, Milwaukee Bucks
  • Julius Erving, Philadelphia 76ers
  • Moses Malone, Philadelphia 76ers
  • Magic Johnson, Los Angeles Lakers
• All–NBA Rookie Team:
  • James Worthy, Los Angeles Lakers
  • Quintin Dailey, Chicago Bulls
  • Terry Cummings, San Diego Clippers
  • Clark Kellogg, Indiana Pacers
  • Dominique Wilkins, Atlanta Hawks
• NBA All–Defensive First Team:
  • Bobby Jones, Philadelphia 76ers
  • Dan Roundfield, Atlanta Hawks
  • Moses Malone, Philadelphia 76ers
  • Sidney Moncrief, Milwaukee Bucks
  • Dennis Johnson, Phoenix Suns (tie)
  • Maurice Cheeks, Philadelphia 76ers (tie)
• NBA All–Defensive Second Team:
  • Larry Bird, Boston Celtics
  • Kevin McHale, Boston Celtics
  • Wayne Rollins, Atlanta Hawks
  • Michael Cooper, Los Angeles Lakers
  • T.R. Dunn, Denver Nuggets