1948-49 BAA Season Standings

In the BAA's third and final season before merging with the NBL, four strong NBL franchises — the Minneapolis Lakers, Rochester Royals, Fort Wayne Pistons, and expansion Indianapolis Jets — jumped to the BAA, immediately elevating the league's competitive balance and setting the stage for the 1949 merger. Minneapolis, led by dominant center George Mikan, won the BAA championship by defeating the Washington Capitols 4 games to 2, the first of the Lakers' unprecedented run of five titles in six seasons spanning the BAA-to-NBA transition. Rochester finished with the league's best record (45-15) but fell in the playoffs, while the last-place Providence Steamrollers (12-48) played their final season before folding. This was also the last season for the original BAA-only two-division format before the three-league merger reorganized the circuit into three divisions the following year.