| Conference | Eastern Conference |
|---|---|
| League | National Basketball Association |
| Sport | Basketball |
| First season | 1970–71 season |
| No. of teams | 5 |
| Most recent champion(s) | Milwaukee Bucks (13th title) |
| Most titles | Milwaukee Bucks (13 titles) |
The Central Division is one of the three divisions in the Eastern Conference of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The division consists of five teams, the Chicago Bulls, the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Detroit Pistons, the Indiana Pacers, and the Milwaukee Bucks. All teams except the Cavaliers are former Midwest Division teams; thus, the Central Division now largely resembles the Midwest Division in the 1970s.
The division was created at the start of the 1970–71 season, when the league expanded from 14 to 17 teams with the addition of the Buffalo Braves, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and the Portland Trail Blazers. The league realigned itself into two conferences, the Western Conference and the Eastern Conference, with two divisions in each conference. The Central Division began with four inaugural members, the Atlanta Hawks, the Baltimore Bullets, the Cincinnati Royals, and the Cavaliers.[1] The Hawks were moved from the Western Division, while the Bullets and the Royals were moved from the Eastern Division.
Thirteen NBA champions came from the Central Division. The Bulls won six championships, the Pistons won three, the Bucks won two, and the Bullets and Cavaliers won one each. All of the teams, except the 1977–78 Bullets and the 2003–04 Pistons, were division champions. In the 2005–06 season, all five teams from the division qualified for the playoffs. Overall, the Bucks have won twelve Central Division titles, followed by the Bulls and Pistons with nine division titles each. The Central Division has the highest percentage of teams that have won a championship, with four out of the five teams having won an NBA title. The Pacers are the lone exception, although they did advance to the NBA Finals in 2000.
The Central Division previously existed for one season, the 1949–50 season, as one of three divisions in the NBA, along with the Western and Eastern divisions. The current Central Division that was formed in 1970 is one of three divisions in the Eastern Conference.
Since the 2021–22 season, the Central Division champion has received the Wayne Embry Trophy, named after Hall of Famer Wayne Embry who played for the Bucks in the 1968–69 NBA season.[2]
- ^ "1970–71 Season Overview: Kareem Rules the League". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. Archived from the original on November 19, 2010. Retrieved May 20, 2012.
- ^ "NBA unveils new trophies for division winners named after 6 NBA legends". NBA.com. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. April 11, 2022. Retrieved January 28, 2023.