‘ pursuit of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s NBA scoring record has wreaked havoc on ticket prices, with one pair soaring as high as $200,000 – although actual purchase prices are expected to be much lower.
The Lakers enter Tuesday’s game against the visiting Thunder with James trailing Abdul-Jabbar’s total of 38,387 points by just 35 points.And as a result, two courtside seats at Crypto.com Arena – 166 and 167 – are being offered for $75,000 apiece, plus Ticketmaster fees. In total, the pair of tickets would cost $181,500.
And there’s no guarantee James will even break the record Tuesday; in fact, at his current scoring pace, he would be just shy of the mark when the Thunder game ends.
Which is why those same seats are even pricier Thursday for the Lakers’ next game against the — the two teams Abdul-Jabbar played for during his Hall of Fame career.For that game: $242,000, including the fees. But history suggests prices will come down; industry experts have long said extravagantly priced tickets rarely fetch the giant number listed.
Don’t be mistaken, though. The best seats will still cost plenty.
LeBron James’ pursuit of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s NBA scoring record has wreaked havoc on ticket prices, with one pair soaring as high as $200,000 – although actual purchase prices are expected to be much lower
‘For the game on Thursday, we did sell a pair of tickets, courtside seats, for $24,000 a ticket, $48,000 total,’ said Kyle Zorn, a brand manager at the online ticket marketplace TickPick.’I feel like people are betting on the storyline that he does it against Kareem’s former team, but he could easily score 36 points Tuesday and then the market for the game Thursday could completely crash.’
Whenever the record falls — maybe Tuesday, maybe Thursday, and it’s doubtful the chase goes past that unless James isn’t playing for some reason — it will be an event.
The NBA has already changed the national television schedule for Tuesday, rearranging things to get the Lakers-Thunder game into the second slot of the usual TNT doubleheader for that night — with Commissioner Adam Silver saying the league wanted to make sure it got as many eyeballs on the record-breaking moment as possible.
The Lakers will be back on TNT against the Bucks on Thursday, plus have another national TV audience awaiting Saturday when they visit Golden State on ABC.Those were previously scheduled that way, no rearranging required.
And there’s no guarantee James will even break the record Tuesday; in fact, http://cornerboyz.com/?p=61479 at his current scoring pace, he would be just shy of the mark when the Thunder game ends.Which is why those same seats are even pricier Thursday for the Lakers’ next game against the Milwaukee Bucks — the two teams Abdul-Jabbar played for during his Hall of Fame career. For that game: $242,000, including the fees. But history suggests prices will come down; industry experts have long said extravagantly priced tickets rarely fetch the giant number listed
Silver said the NBA will pay tribute when James passes Abdul-Jabbar’s total of 38,387 points, with likely a larger-scale celebration of the record at All-Star weekend in Salt Lake City later this month.
‘There’s no doubt we will stop that game and make sure we record for history, the ball, the basket, the uniform,’ Silver said.’We’ll stop and make sure that we’ve done our jobs as the archivists of the NBA. At the same time, there’s that balance that they will be playing against a team that will very much want to win that night and not be distracted. Most likely we will do something in the moment.’
Common sense will likely prevail there: If James gets the record with a minute to go in a close game, for example, the NBA probably won’t interrupt the proceedings with a lengthy stoppage.If it happens early, a brief halting of play wouldn’t be unprecedented.
James moved 36 points away from breaking the NBA career scoring record in the Lakers’ 131-126 loss to New Orleans on Saturday night that ended the Pelicans’ losing streak at 10 games.
‘I just want to win,’ James said.’You know, you play the game the right way and see what happens.’
James had 27 points to go with nine rebounds and six assists as he continued to close in on Abdul-Jabbar’s record total of 38,387 points.
‘I’m tired as hell,’ James said, but added, ‘I’ll be ready to go on Tuesday,’ when the Lakers play the Thunder.
The Los Angeles Lakers enter Tuesday’s game against the visiting Oklahoma Thunder with James trailing Abdul-Jabbar’s total of 38,387 points by just 35 points.And as a result, two courtside seats at Crypto.com Arena – 166 and 167 – are being offered for $75,000 apiece, plus Ticketmaster fees. In total, the pair of tickets would cost $181,500