| # | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB | |
| 1 | z-Washington Bullets | 54 | 28 | .659 | – |
| 2 | y-San Antonio Spurs | 48 | 34 | .585 | 6 |
| 3 | x-Philadelphia 76ers | 47 | 35 | .573 | 7 |
| 4 | x-Houston Rockets | 47 | 35 | .573 | 7 |
| 5 | x-Atlanta Hawks | 46 | 36 | .561 | 8 |
| 6 | x-New Jersey Nets | 37 | 45 | .451 | 17 |
| 7 | New York Knicks | 31 | 51 | .378 | 23 |
| 8 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 30 | 52 | .366 | 24 |
| 8 | Detroit Pistons | 30 | 52 | .366 | 24 |
| 10 | Boston Celtics | 29 | 53 | .354 | 25 |
| 11 | New Orleans Jazz | 26 | 56 | .317 | 28 |
To use the update on any article, insert:
{{1978–79 NBA East standings}}
To highlight the New York Knicks, insert:
{{1978–79 NBA East standings|team=NYK}}
For the other teams, use:
- Washington Bullets - WSB
- Boston Celtics - BOS
- Houston Rockets - HOU
- Cleveland Cavaliers - CLE
- Detroit Pistons - DET
- Atlanta Hawks - ATL
- Philadelphia 76ers - PHI
- New Orleans Jazz - NOJ
- New Jersey Nets - NJN
- San Antonio Spurs - SAS