Attending a Lakers playoff game is an exciting outing for any family.
The Lake Show isn’t just a basketball team in this city. It’s a Broadway show, a Hollywood premiere and a sports spectacle all rolled into one. A-list celebrities are everywhere, the arena is rocking and fans get to watch the 17-time NBA champion Lakers featuring LeBron James and Luka Doncic.
However, on Monday night, a family of four paid staggering prices just to watch their beloved Lakers get swept by the reigning champion Thunder. Talk about a tough way to say goodbye.
The Thunder completed the sweep in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals in a thrilling 115-110 victory, sending LA into a very long offseason filled with questions about LeBron, Austin Reaves and the future of basketball’s most glamorous franchise.
But while OKC delivered the knockout blow on the court, Lakers fans were busy absorbing another one in their wallets.
According to a new analysis from The Action Network, it cost a family of four a staggering $2,615.01 total to attend Game 4 at Crypto.com Arena in downtown Los Angeles. That total price includes four tickets, parking, food, drinks and merchandise. For perspective, the average cost for a family of four to attend a regular-season Lakers game is about $677.64.
The inflated prices might be attributed to fans willing to pay for what possibly was LeBron’s last game in a Lakers uniform.
Meanwhile, families in OKC were attending Games 1 and 2 at Paycom Center for $1,796.09, nearly $1,000 cheaper than the cost in LA.
And yet, Los Angeles and OKC were not even the most expensive or cheapest of the eight teams playing in the conference semifinals.
Somehow, the Knicks laughed at the Lakers’ prices.
A family of four attending a playoff game at Madison Square Garden for Games 1 and 2 against the 76ers paid $3,611.73. That’s the price of a used car and a bucket of popcorn in most cities.
The most affordable postseason experience belonged to the Cavaliers in Cleveland, where a family of four paid $1,330.96 to catch the Cavs against the Pistons.
With another round to go before the NBA Finals tips off in June, Lakers fans might be grateful their team is no longer competing. Whereas Thunder and Knicks fans will have to keep opening their wallets to see if their team wins a title.
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[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
