Last Updated on November 16, 2025 by Mat Diekhake

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Here is the 1956–57 Minneapolis Lakers roster and regular season player statistics.

This season marked the continued decline of the Lakers’ original dynasty, as aging stars like Jim Pollard and Vern Mikkelsen were nearing the ends of their careers. The team finished under .500 and missed the playoffs.

1956–57 Minneapolis Lakers Roster

No. Player Pos Height Weight Birthdate College
18 Clyde Lovellette C 6’9″ 234 lbs Sept 7, 1929 Kansas
19 Vern Mikkelsen F 6’7″ 230 lbs Oct 21, 1928 Hamline
17 Jim Pollard F 6’4″ 185 lbs July 9, 1922 Stanford
20 Slater Martin G 5’10” 170 lbs Oct 22, 1925 Texas
22 Chuck Mencel G 6’0″ 180 lbs Aug 10, 1933 Minnesota
14 Walter Dukes C 7’0″ 230 lbs June 23, 1930 Seton Hall
15 Whitey Skoog G 5’11” 180 lbs Nov 2, 1926 Minnesota
— Bob Schafer G 6’3″ 185 lbs Mar 18, 1933 Villanova
— Ed Kalafat F 6’6″ 245 lbs Oct 13, 1932 Minnesota

1956–57 Regular Season Per Game

Player Pos Age G GS MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG TOV FGA FG% 3PA 3P% FTA FT%
Clyde Lovellette C 27 69 69 36.1 20.8 13.5 2.0 – – – 19.5 .426 – – 5.8 .717
Dick Garmaker SG 24 72 72 33.4 16.3 4.7 2.6 – – – 14.1 .400 – – 6.0 .839
Vern Mikkelsen PF 28 72 72 30.5 13.7 8.8 1.7 – – – 11.9 .377 – – 5.9 .807
Whitey Skoog SG 30 23 23 28.5 8.7 3.1 3.3 – – – 9.6 .355 – – 2.0 .936
Slick Leonard PG 24 72 72 27.0 11.0 3.1 2.3 – – – 12.0 .349 – – 3.3 .772
Walter Dukes C 26 71 71 26.3 10.1 11.2 0.8 – – – 8.8 .364 – – 5.4 .689
Chuck Mencel PG 23 72 72 25.7 9.2 3.3 2.8 – – – 9.6 .353 – – 3.3 .746
Ed Kalafat SF 24 65 65 24.9 8.5 6.5 1.6 – – – 7.8 .351 – – 4.6 .661
Jim Paxson SF 24 71 71 17.9 6.3 3.7 1.2 – – – 6.8 .285 – – 3.3 .720
Dick Schnittker SF 28 70 70 14.2 5.5 2.6 0.7 – – – 5.0 .322 – – 2.8 .829
Bob Williams – 25 4 4 5.0 1.0 1.3 0.0 – – – 1.0 .250 – – 0.8 .667
Team Totals – – 72 – 26.2 102.3 63.6 16.6 – – – 35.9 .371 – – 40.3 .757

1956–57 Playoff Per Game

Player Pos Age G GS MPG PPG RPG APG SPG BPG TOV FGA FG% 3PA 3P% FTA FT%
Slick Leonard PG 24 5 5 40.8 21.4 6.0 7.6 – – – 20.0 .420 – – 5.2 .885
Dick Garmaker SG 24 5 5 37.4 13.0 7.0 3.4 – – – 13.8 .275 – – 6.4 .844
Clyde Lovellette C 27 5 5 36.2 24.2 9.4 2.2 – – – 23.6 .432 – – 5.2 .731
Walter Dukes C 26 5 5 35.4 13.6 14.8 1.0 – – – 11.4 .421 – – 5.4 .741
Vern Mikkelsen PF 28 5 5 32.4 17.6 8.6 3.4 – – – 16.6 .398 – – 6.8 .647
Ed Kalafat SF 24 5 5 20.8 12.6 4.8 1.8 – – – 7.2 .583 – – 6.2 .677
Chuck Mencel PG 23 5 5 19.6 5.0 2.6 1.2 – – – 7.2 .250 – – 1.8 .778
Dick Schnittker SF 28 5 5 16.6 5.4 2.4 1.6 – – – 4.2 .286 – – 3.4 .882
Jim Paxson SF 24 5 5 10.8 5.0 2.8 0.6 – – – 5.4 .333 – – 2.8 .500
Team Totals – – 5 – 250.0 117.8 66.8 22.8 – – – 109.4 .391 – – 43.2 .745

1956–57 Regular Season Totals

Player Pos Age GP GS Min Pts Reb Ast Stl Blk TO FGA FGM 3PA 3PM FTA FTM
Clyde Lovellette C 27 69 69 2492 1434 932 139 – – – 1348 574 – – 399 286
Dick Garmaker SG 24 72 72 2406 1177 336 190 – – – 1015 406 – – 435 365
Vern Mikkelsen PF 28 72 72 2198 986 630 121 – – – 854 322 – – 424 342
Slick Leonard PG 24 72 72 1943 792 220 169 – – – 867 303 – – 241 186
Walter Dukes C 26 71 71 1866 720 794 54 – – – 626 228 – – 383 264
Chuck Mencel PG 23 72 72 1848 665 237 201 – – – 688 243 – – 240 179
Ed Kalafat SF 24 65 65 1617 553 425 105 – – – 507 178 – – 298 197
Jim Paxson SF 24 71 71 1274 446 266 86 – – – 485 138 – – 236 170
Dick Schnittker SF 28 70 70 997 386 185 52 – – – 351 113 – – 193 160
Whitey Skoog SG 30 23 23 656 200 72 76 – – – 220 78 – – 47 44
Bob Williams – 25 4 4 20 4 5 0 – – – 4 1 – – 3 2
Team Totals – – 72 – 17317 7363 4102 1193 – – – 6965 2584 – – 2899 2195

1956–57 Playoff Totals

Player Pos Age GP GS Min Pts Reb Ast Stl Blk TO FGA FGM 3PA 3PM FTA FTM
Slick Leonard PG 24 5 5 204 107 30 38 – – – 100 42 – – 26 23
Dick Garmaker SG 24 5 5 187 65 35 17 – – – 69 19 – – 32 27
Clyde Lovellette C 27 5 5 181 121 47 11 – – – 118 51 – – 26 19
Walter Dukes C 26 5 5 177 68 74 5 – – – 57 24 – – 27 20
Vern Mikkelsen PF 28 5 5 162 88 43 17 – – – 83 33 – – 34 22
Ed Kalafat SF 24 5 5 104 63 24 9 – – – 36 21 – – 31 21
Chuck Mencel PG 23 5 5 98 25 13 6 – – – 36 9 – – 9 7
Dick Schnittker SF 28 5 5 83 27 12 8 – – – 21 6 – – 17 15
Jim Paxson SF 24 5 5 54 25 14 3 – – – 27 9 – – 14 7
Team Totals – – 5 – 1250 589 292 114 – – – 547 214 – – 216 161

Team Impact Index

Player Name Role Tier MPG Usage Tier PPG RPG APG STK (SPG+BPG) Impact Index* Notes
Clyde Lovellette Primary Interior Anchor 36.1 High Scoring Hub 20.8 13.5 2.0 N/A 18.15 All-Star
Dick Garmaker Premier Wing Scorer 33.4 High Secondary Scorer 16.3 4.7 2.6 N/A 11.80 All-Star, All-NBA
Vern Mikkelsen Two-Way Enforcer 30.5 Balanced 13.7 8.8 1.7 N/A 12.10 All-Star
Whitey Skoog Secondary Creator 28.5 Medium Facilitation 8.7 3.1 3.3 N/A 7.55 —
Slick Leonard Primary Ballhandler 27.0 Medium Creator 11.0 3.1 2.3 N/A 8.20 —
Walter Dukes Defensive Rebound Specialist 26.3 Low Usage Big 10.1 11.2 0.8 N/A 11.05 —
Chuck Mencel Support Guard 25.7 Secondary Ballhandler 9.2 3.3 2.8 N/A 7.65 —
Ed Kalafat Rotational Forward 24.9 Depth/Role Player 8.5 6.5 1.6 N/A 8.30 —
Jim Paxson Depth Wing 17.9 Bench Scorer 6.3 3.7 1.2 N/A 5.60 —
Dick Schnittker Veteran Shooter 14.2 Spot-Up Usage 5.5 2.6 0.7 N/A 4.40 —
Bob Williams End-of-Bench Big 5.0 Minimal 1.0 1.3 0.0 N/A 1.15 —
TEAM TOTALS — 26.2 — 102.3 63.6 16.6 N/A 91.25 Totals provided by user