Record: 48-22, first place in Western Division
The Lakers won the division by four games over archrival Rochester. George Mikan finished second in the league in scoring at 20.6 points per game and first in rebounding at 14.4 per game. Teammate Vern Mikkelsen finished eighth in scoring with 15.0 points per game.
Playoffs: The Lakers swept Indianapolis and Fort Wayne in the preliminary rounds to set up a rematch with the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals. The Finals opened in Minneapolis, and the Knicks stunned the Lakers with an eight-point win in Game 1. Minneapolis barely beat the Knicks in Game 2, and with the next three games taking place at Madison Square Garden, things looked bleak for the Lakers. But the Lakers stormed back to win all three in New York and become the NBA's first repeat champs.