1961 NBA playoffs

The 1961 NBA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the National Basketball Association's 1960-61 season. The tournament concluded with the Eastern Division champion Boston Celtics defeating the Western Division champion St. Louis Hawks 4 games to 1 in the NBA Finals.

The Lakers made the playoffs for the first time after moving to Los Angeles. They were one game away from their first Finals in L.A. as the St. Louis Hawks defeat them.

The Division Semifinals were extended from a best-of-three to a best-of-five series.

For the Celtics, it was their third straight NBA title and fourth overall. This would be the last Finals appearance for the Hawks franchise to date; though they still exist in the NBA as the Atlanta Hawks, they have yet to return to the Finals as of 2024.

Bracket

 * Division winner

Bold Series winner

Italic Team with home-court advantage in NBA Finals

(2) Philadelphia Warriors vs. (3) Syracuse Nationals
This was the eighth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the 76ers/Nationals winning four of the first seven meetings.

(2) Los Angeles Lakers vs. (3) Detroit Pistons
This was the eighth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Lakers winning six of the first seven meetings when the Lakers were in Minneapolis.

(1) Boston Celtics vs. (3) Syracuse Nationals
This was the eighth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Nationals winning four of the first seven meetings.

(1) St. Louis Hawks vs. (2) Los Angeles Lakers
This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Hawks winning three of the first four meetings while the Lakers were based in Minneapolis.

NBA Finals: (E1) Boston Celtics vs. (W1) St. Louis Hawks

 * Bill Sharman's final NBA game.

This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams, with the Celtics winning two of the first three meetings.