Archive for the ‘NBA Tickets News’ Category

Seems like the entire world is abuzz about Jeremy Lin and the resurgent New York Knicks as they have reeled off seven straight wins.  Ticket to Madison Square Garden have become incredibly hot as demand has spiked and season ticket holders have become much less likely to sell.

Check out the impact of Linsanity on the market prices of this weeks’ upcoming Knicks home games.  Jeremy’s breakout game was Feb 4 when an injured Carmello Anthony told Coach Mike D’Antoni to put in the kid at the end of the bench since nothing else was working for the struggling Knicks.  Look at the effect on ticket prices fan demand has had since then!

The great news is you can still, albeit at the higher prices, find Knicks tickets to see Jeremy play live here.

NBA All Star Game

The even better news is that Jeremy has been invited to play in the NBA All Star Rising Stars Challenge.  You can find tickets to this game, the NBA All Star Game, and all the NBA All Star Weekend events here:

Sure we know the holidays just passed.  Hopefully your gift was as thoughtful as the one you received.  No?  Here’s your chance to make good, that is, if your “significant other” is an NBA fan.  Valentines Day is little more than month away!  Check out these games played on February 14, and imagine your loved one’s delight:

Washington Wizards @ Portland Trail Blazers

Houston Rockets @ Memphis Grizzlies

Miami Heat @ Indiana Pacers

New York Knicks @ Toronto Raptors

Utah Jazz @ Oklahoma City Thunder

Sacramento Kings @ Chicago Bulls

Phoenix Suns @ Denver Nuggets

San Antonio Spurs @ Detroit Pistons

Atlanta Hawks @ Los Angeles Lakers

As grandma used to say, nothing says love like a nice pre-game dinner and then some pro hoops.  Pucker up for the kiss-cam!

Team FanSnap

2011 was a great year for sports as fans rooted for their historic franchises, up and coming underdogs, and even enjoyed the “superstar effect.”  We saw some amazing championship runs and even dodged any lasting effects from a labor action or two.  What were the most popular sports searches of 2011?  For your rooting pleasure, here are the most searched-for sports terms on FanSnap in 2011.

Check here to see who’s moved up or down, or even moved off or on the list, versus 2010!

What will 2012 bring?  We look forward to helping fans find their favorites no matter what and were they are!

Happy holidays!

Team FanSnap

In what has been one of the most entertaining match-ups of this 2011 NBA Playoffs, the Dallas Mavericks and Miami Heat are tied 2-2 in the NBA Finals. The series has been outrageously close: each game has been decided by eight points or less, and the total point differential over the four games is +5 for the Heat.

Credit: Mark Ralston/Getty Images

As a game seven seems more and more likely, don’t miss out on a chance to a series that could go down in basketball history as one of the most competitive, hard fought Finals of the modern era. Check out some NBA Finals tickets and data below.

NBA Finals Tickets Update

Average ticket prices are actually slightly lower than they were back when we first analyzed the Finals ticket data. For example, Game 6 tickets in Miami have dropped from $971 on June 1st to $665 as of today, June 9th. This is quite low but keep in mind; the secondary ticket market has been flooded with new tickets, with total offerings jumping from 3,700 on the first to 6,700 as of today for Game 6 tickets.

Miami Heat tickets are still hotter than Mavericks tickets, as Game 7 tickets are averaging $1,150. Again, the price is dropping because more Game 7 tickets are for sale on the secondary market: there were only 3,600 for sale on the first and today there are over 5,000.

Dallas Mavericks @ Miami Heat : Game 6 NBA Finals, Sunday June 12

• The lowest priced ticket is $180 for general admission seats at the very top of the stadium.
• The overall Best Value ticket to Game 6 in Miami is a seat in Lower Level Center 117 for $1125, 67% off the average price of comparable tickets in the area.

Dallas Mavericks @ Miami Heat : Game 7 NBA Finals, Tuesday June 14

• Obviously, Game 7 tickets are the hottest of the series, but you can find a minimum priced tickets into the arena for as low as $321.
• There are a ton of Best Value tickets for Game 7 of the finals. Sit in Lower Level Center 105 for only $1,375 which is a killer price for a seat in a section so close to the floor.

As the series goes on, remember to check back at FanSnap for more NBA Finals tickets.

What a difference a layup makes. What a difference a game-winning layup makes. What a difference a Dirk Nowitzki, left-handed (that’s the injured hand) game-winning layup capping a huge comeback to even the series as you head back to your home court for three games makes. Mavs fans thought so anyway.

After the Heat win in Game 1, the Heat looked hard to beat. Many were writing off the Mavs and ticket prices for Games 3-5 in Dallas were going down — a sign of softening demand.

After that layup though, Game 3 average ticket prices shot up. Average ticket market prices for NBA Finals: Game 3 went from $734 to $856 since last night’s win over the Heat. Overall, NBA Finals tickets in Dallas average $801.

- Lowest price tickets – $246 (Upper 333)
- Middle tickets start at $463 (Middle 224 Row F/SRO)
- Lower tickets start at $450 (Lower 114 Row V)
- Admiral Suites start at $875 (Row C1321)
- Floor seats start at $5975 (Row AA)

Even as average ticket market prices increase, there are still values to be had.

FanSnap powers Microsoft’s Bing search engine so now when you search for Mavs tickets on Bing, you can compare available tickets on a FanSnap maps without ever leaving Bing.

In addition to FanSnap.com, FanSnap powers ticket comparison-shopping for search and media partners including Microsoft’s Bing Decision Engine, Philly.com, PollStar, STATS Inc. partner sites, and Time Warner Inc.’s RoadRunner.com.

Fans use FanSnap to shop 50+ of the most trusted secondary market ticket sites for the best values in sports, theater and concert tickets.  Partners include Ace Ticket, AllShows, Barry’s Tickets, Broadway.com, eBay, Gold Coast Tickets, Las Vegas Tickets, RazorGator, StubHub, NFL TicketExchange, TicketNetwork, TicketsNow, and Tickets-for-Charity.  Our detailed ticket-level search results are made possible by the combination of strategic industry partnerships and systems integration, as well as our FanSnap TicketData systems and patent-pending dynamic FanSnap Maps.

The 2011 NBA Finals are set: the Dallas Mavericks will take on the Miami Heat in a best-of-seven series. Back in October, when the season first started, it would have been impossible to predict this match-up, as the Heat were struggling and the Mavericks were not on anyone’s radar.

credit: NBA.com

But now, almost 100 games later, it looks like the NBA Finals will be between the two best teams in the NBA. The Miami Heat had to go through the Philadelphia 76ers, the Boston Celtics, and the Chicago Bulls to make it to the final, while the Mavs had to tough it out against the Portland Trail Blazers, L.A. Lakers, and OKC Thunder. Clearly, both teams earned their spots in the 2011 NBA Finals.

So how about NBA Finals tickets? In a season that had average ticket prices as high as $1,000 for the Christmas Day game between the Heat and Lakers, we’d expect to see prices go even higher. Check out some NBA Finals ticket data below.

2011 NBA Finals: Hottest and Best Value tickets

• Tickets in Dallas are averaging $865 over the three Mavericks home games. Tickets in Miami are averaging $1135.
• The overall average ticket price for the entire NBA Finals is $1,033. Last year, when the Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics went toe to toe in a 7 game Final, tickets were averaging $892. That’s a 15% increase in overall average ticket prices for the NBA Finals.
• Even though Miami Heat tickets are averaging almost $200 more than Dallas Mavericks tickets, there are still great values to be had. Check out some of the Best Value tickets to Game 1 in Miami on Tuesday, May 31:

• There are also a number of Best Value tickets in Dallas for Game 4. For example, sit in Lower level Section 113 for only $688, which is about 65% off the average price of comparable tickets in the area.
• Fans can also get great tickets in Middle section 204 for $990, half off the average price of $1820.

FanSnap has fans covered on Heat tickets and Mavericks tickets through the 2011 NBA Finals. Check back often for more Best Value and ticket price data.

credit: espn.com

The past few weeks of  NBA Playoff basketball have been nothing short of entertaining. The quality of basketball played by teams like the Chicago Bulls and Oklahoma City Thunder has been great to watch, and seeing underdogs like the Memphis Grizzlies knock off the number one seeded San Antonio Spurs is a rarity in the modern era of basketball.

The 2011 NBA Playoffs has also had a number of interesting story lines underlying the game on court. The meltdown of the Los Angeles Lakers against the Dallas Mavericks was shocking, and the possibility that head coach Phil Jackson might be walking away from basketball has churned speculation over who will take over as the new Lakers coach.

Regardless of weeks past, the Conference Finals are set and underway. The Dallas Mavericks take on the Oklahoma City Thunder in the West, and the Chicago Bulls play the Miami Heat in a best of seven in the East (the Bulls already took game 1 off the Heat).

Out of the four remaining teams, which town is the most amped about its team being in the Conference Finals, a series-win away from the NBA Finals? Check out the data on NBA Playoffs tickets below. These rankings are based on the overall average price of the home games for each team, disregarding game 7.

NBA Playoff Tickets: Conference Finals

1. Chicago Bulls tickets: $459
2. Oklahoma City Thunder tickets: $375
3. Miami Heat tickets: $337
4. Dallas Mavericks tickets: $288

The city of Chicago is clearly out-of-its-mind excited for their Bulls: the average price of Bulls tickets is over $100 more than the Thunder tickets. Although Dallas is last on the list, it doesn’t mean Texans aren’t backing their team: a $288 average ticket price is still a significantly high number in terms of ticket prices.

FanSnap can help you find the best tickets to the NBA Conference Finals, as well as NBA Finals tickets. Check back for more info on where to score the best possible tickets at the best possible values.

image credit: tremendousupsidepotential.com

Derrick Rose officially captured the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award on Tuesday. At 22, it makes Rose the youngest player ever to win the illustrious title as most valuable in the league.

Rose definitely deserved it. He averaged 25 points, 7.7 assists and 4.1 rebounds a game in the Bulls regular season campaign. He helped the Chicago Bulls get the #1 seed in the Eastern Conference Playoffs, and although they dropped game 1 to in the Eastern Conference Semifinals to the Atlanta Hawks, Rose and Co. are no where close to being done.

How did Rose’s MVP-award impact the prices of Chicago Bulls tickets? It didn’t really. Check out the data below.

• Rose received the award on Tuesday, May 3. Tickets to Game 2, at home against the Hawks, were averaging $165 on May 2. As of today, May 4, tickets have dropped to $120. This trend may have more to do with the fact that today is game day, but still, we see little immediate impact.
• As of May 2, tickets were averaging $130 for the Game 3 match-up between the Hawks and the Bulls (in Atlanta on Friday). They dropped to $121 today.
• Tickets to game 5 averaged of $330 from April 28 to May 3, and as of today, they have dropped to $304.

Perhaps Derrick Rose’s MVP award didn’t have a huge impact on tickets because he was a shoe-in for the MVP for most of season. He received 113 first place votes and a total of 1,182 points. Dwight Howard came in second in voting, and he barely came close with a total of 643 points.

Remember, Chicago sports fans can get the best Bulls tickets at FanSnap. Also, check us out for any and all NBA Playoffs tickets.

photo credit: ESPN

On the eve of Round 2 of the 2011 NBA Playoffs, we took a look at which NBA team has the hottest tickets to the NBA Conference Semifinals. We looked at the average ticket prices for home games during this round of the playoffs.

The Grizz are #4?!?!

We weren’t shocked to find the Celtics, Lakers and Heat with the hottest tickets. The team in the #4 slot was a bit of a surprise. The Memphis Grizzlies — the number eight seed that just knocked off top seed San Antonio has the fourth hottest tickets in the NBA playoffs.

Boston Title-Town USA?

Boston is the only city with teams in both the 2011 NBA and NHL Playoffs. The Red Sox — a preseason favorite by many to make it to the Fall Classic — seem to be righting the ship after starting the season by losing 10 of 12 — are once again looking good in the AL East and have the hottest tickets in baseball. The Cs have the hottest tickets in the NHL (averaging $359) and the Bruins are a strong #3 in the NHL (averaging $313 for tickets).

Here is the complete ranking of Round 2 NBA Playoffs tickets (based on average price for home games)

1. Boston Celtics Tickets Average = $359
2. LA Lakers Tickets Average = $319
3. Miami Heat Tickets Average = $312
4. Memphis Grizzlies Tickets Average = $246
5. Chicago Bulls Tickets Average = $227
6. Dallas Mavericks Tickets Average = $212
7. Atlanta Hawks Tickets Average = $154
8. OKC Thunder Tickets Average = $152

NBA Playoffs Eastern Conference Semifinals

Hawks vs Bulls

Bulls lead the series 3-2.

Celtics vs  Heat

The Heat beat the Celtics 4-1.

NBA Playoffs Western Conference Semifinals

Mavericks vs Lakers

Mavs sweep Lakers. Whoa!

Grizzlies vs Thunder

OKC leads the series tied 3-2.

Ask any fan around the country, and they’ll tell you that this NBA season was one of the best — at least for on- and off-court drama. Starting with an off-season during which we saw Lebron James and Chris Bosh take their talents to Miami, joining Dwyane Wade on what looked like — at least on paper — a consensus NBA Finals favorite. The other teams active in the LeBron sweepstakes, the Knicks, acquired Amare Stoudemire and Carmelo Anthony while the Bulls effectively stood pat and then quietly ended the year with the best record in the NBA. The Eastern Conference Champion Celtics dealt Kendrick Perkins to Oklahoma City in a move that some say potentially took the Celtics out of championship contention. Needless to say, there was no shortage of interesting storylines. Many of which had dramatic impacts on ticket demand.

All that and the best of the NBA season is yet to come. As we anticipate the tip-off to the NBA post season, we thought we’ve have a look and see which team’s fans are most anticipating the playoffs. Check below to see which town has the most in-demand tickets determined by their average ticket price for home games.

NBA Playoffs Tickets: Hottest Home Teams for the Conference Quarterfinals (Round 1)

1. 

   Will this be the Knicks' year? Image source: www.espn.go.com

   New York Knicks tickets: $360

2. Los Angeles Lakers tickets: $278
3. Portland Trail Blazers tickets: $194
4. Boston Celtics tickets: $179
5. Miami Heat tickets: $166
6. Chicago Bulls tickets: $165
7. Denver Nuggets tickets: $145
8. OKC Thunder tickets: $138
9. Memphis Grizzlies tickets: $128
10. Indiana Pacers tickets: $125
11. New Orleans Hornets tickets: $98
12. Philadelphia 76ers tickets: $88
13. Dallas Mavericks tickets: $76
14. Atlanta Hawks tickets: $74
15. Orlando Magic tickets: $67
16. San Antonio Spurs tickets: $64

NBA Playoffs Tickets: Hottest Conference Quarterfinals (Round 1) Matchups

1. Knicks – Celtics playoffs tickets average: $270
2. Lakers – Hornets playoffs tickets average: $188
3. Bulls – Pacers playoffs tickets average: $145
4. Denver – Thunder playoffs tickets average: $142
5. Blazers – Mavericks playoffs tickets average: $135
6. Heat – 76ers playoffs tickets average: $127
7. Grizzlies – Spurs playoffs tickets average: $112
8. Hawks – Magic playoffs tickets average: $71

Think New York is excited to have their team back in the Playoffs? Knicks tickets are killing it right now, averaging about $100 more than Lakers tickets and well above Celtics tickets.

Remember to check out FanSnap for the best possible NBA Playoffs tickets at the best possible values.

There are those times in a sports fans life where things are just right. This weekend has got to feel like one of those times. With the Final Four in Houston, Opening Day baseball around the country, and playoff basketball just weeks away, it’s a great time to be a fan. We’ve done a survey of all of the Best Value tickets from around the country. Whether it’s the NCAAs, baseball, or the NBA, you’re bound to find something that strikes your fancy below.

Final Four tickets, Saturday, April 2: Butler vs. VCU and Kentucky vs. UConn

• Tickets to the Final Four have been in lower demand compared to years past. That doesn’t mean the action in Houston will be anything short of exciting.
• Grab tickets in 300 level 340 for $250: that’s 61% off the average price of similar tickets in the area.
• Or find tickets in 100 Level section 138, 65% off the average price for a total of $258.

MLB tickets: Boston Red Sox @ Texas Rangers, Friday April 1st

• This is one of the hottest games of the opening weekend. Tickets can still be found for some great values though: sit in Grandstand Reserved 344 for only $66. That’s 44% off the average ticket price.
• Sit behind home plate in Premium Infield 23 for $204. That’s half off the average price of $440.

MLB tickets: San Francisco Giants @ Los Angeles Dodgers, Friday April 1st

• Want to see the defending World Series Champs in action? Get into the ball park for a meer $18, which will get you into the outfield seats for 76% off the average price.

NBA Tickets: Cleveland Cavaliers @ New York Knicks, Sunday April 3rd

• Knicks tickets have been at an all time high since the Carmelo Anthony trade. As they make the push towards the Playoffs, check out some Best Value tickets to this weekend’s Cavs-Knicks game.
• Find tickets in 300 Section 307 2/3′s off the average price for a total of $74.

NBA Tickets: Detroit Pistons @ Boston Celtics, Sunday April 3rd

• The C’s have been struggling as of late, but don’t count them out yet. TD Garden will be packed this Sunday.
• Get in on the action: tickets in Club 141, close to the floor, can be found for $248, which is 39% off the price of similar tickets.

Photo credit: New York Daily News

Anytime an NBA superstar goes to a new team, ticket prices tend to go up: we saw it with Lebron James and the Heat this past summer (in the Lebron Effect). The news gets fans excited about their team, a fresh start, and the possibility of seeing one of the NBA greats in their team’s jersey. Speculation about a Carmelo Anthony trade has been percolating for months. Rumors reached a fever pitch at the NBA All-Star Game. Would Melo be a Net? A Knick? A Laker?

Now that trade has been confirmed, both the Knicks and the Denver Nuggets look like drastically different teams. In a three-way deal involving the Nuggets, Knicks and Minnesota Timberwolves, the Knicks got Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Anthony Carter, Shelden Williams, Renaldo Balkman, and Corey Brewer. The Nuggets, in exchange for their star, got Danilo Gallinari, Wilson Chandler, Raymond Felton, Timofey Mozgov, as well as multiple draft picks. Don’t forget about the T-Wolves: they now have Eddy Curry and Anthony Randolph, as well as $3 million in cash.

Now that Melo’s a Knick, how much has Anthony’s move to the Big Apple influenced fans demand for Knicks tickets? Check out the data below.

New York Knicks tickets

• It’s still questionable whether Carmelo Anthony will play tonight at MSG, but when the Anthony trade was announced, ticket prices to the Knicks home game against the Milwaukee Bucks skyrocketed. On the 21st tickets were averaging $242, and after the trade was official, they jumped to $531 on the 22nd. That’s a 122% increase in ticket prices.
• Knicks average ticket prices are up more than $90 each (from $195 prior to the trade to $285 today — for remaining regular season home games) since the trade was announced.
• The prices for Hornets-Knicks tickets (New York’s next home game) have increased as well. On the 21st ticket prices were averaging $213, and as of today they are averaging $329. That’s a 54% increase in overall average ticket price for this game. Assuming Carmelo does not take the court in a Knicks uniform tonight against the Bucks. Expect tickets to Carmelo’s first home game as a Knick to continue to increase.
• And as of this morning, the cross-river rivals New Jersey Nets have acquired All-Star Derron Williams in yet another blockbuster trade. The Nets-Knicks game on March 30 is going to be a seriously exciting game. Ticket prices were already up since the Carmelo Anthony Trade. How much higher can they go, now that the Nets have star of their own?

Check back at FanSnap for the best possible New York Knicks tickets at the best possible values.

UPDATED 2.15.2011

Last week, we speculated that ticket prices to this year’s NBA All-Star game would continue to trend up and could rival ticket prices to the 2010 Super Bowl between the Saints and Colts at $2,200. Today, NBA All Star Game ticket prices average $2,130 — very nearly what we saw for the 2010 Super Bowl and a few more days for ticket prices to continue trending upward.

Average NBA All-Star Game ticket prices at this same time last year were $335.

Even as prices trend upward, fans can still find values of 25% to 50% off the average price for comparable tickets. How is that possible you ask? Because even as average prices go up, the market is made up of individuals with different motivations. FanSnap makes it easy to spot the motivated seller and save $1k or more on tickets in the same row.

(original post – Feb 9, 2011)

This year feels like much more than just your average NBA regular season. Part of it has to do with the incredible hype around the Miami Heat and their free agent pick ups last summer. Another part, the exciting young talent that is taking the league by storm (think Blake Griffin, athletic freak and duck-specialist). And maybe another, the anticipation of yet another Lakers championship, making it the second three-peat of Kobe Bryant’s career.

Courtesy of Ryan Hurst @NBA_Photos

Regardless of the reason it’s been a great one thus far, and in two weeks the best of the NBA will head to Staples Center in Los Angeles for NBA All Star Weekend. The line-ups are set for the All Star Game on Sunday. And all eyes are on Blake Griffin in the Dunk Contest.

If you’re on the hunt for NBA All Star Game tickets, look no further. FanSnap can help you find the best tickets to the NBA All Star Saturday Night, the NBA All Star Rookie Challenge, and the NBA All Star Game. Check out some of our Best Value tickets below.

2011 NBA All-Star Saturday Night Tickets

• Saturday night, Staples Center hosts the Skills Challenge, the Three Point Contest, and the Slam Dunk Contest. Tickets to this event are averaging $661, with over 1,700 tickets listed at FanSnap.
• Grab a Best Value ticket for $140: that will get you a seat in Loge Center 102. You end up saving 94% off the average price of similar tickets in this area.
• Or, get super close to the action with tickets in Loge Baseline 109. Find them at FanSnap for only $1,150, which is 34% off the average ticket price of $1,755.

2011 NBA All-Star Game Tickets

Tickets to the main event are averaging $1,558.  the lowest priced ticket available is going for $548. 2011 NBA All-Star ticket prices are more than six times higher than last year’s ticket prices at this time ($234). That is — at least in part — due to ticket supply. This year, there are roughly 2,000 tickets listed on the ticket market for the NBA All-Star Game in L.A. Last year at this time, there were nearly 8,000 listings for the game in Cowboys Stadium. Of course, last year’s All-Star game boasted an eye-popping 108,713 fans. The Staples Center seats closer to 19,000.

Ticket prices last year trended upward right up until tip off. It ticket prices to this year’s game continue to trend up, Ticket prices to the 2011 NBA All-Star Game could rival ticket prices to the 2010 Super Bowl between the Saints and Colts at $2,200.

• Sit in Upper Corner 307 for only $550: that’s 32% lower than the average ticket price of $820.
• Check out seats in Loge Center 110. Those tickets are only $3,910, down 38% from the average ticket price of $6,380.
• Check out the seating chart below for other areas inside Staples Center with Best Value tickets.

Check out our Staples Center Seating Chart for the 2011 NBA All Star Game tickets. Shop and compare tickets by row. We even have pictures so you can see the view from your seat.

We will keep you up to date with Best Value tickets as the game approaches, but remember to check FanSnap in the next few weeks for the best possible NBA All Star tickets for the best possible values.

As 2010 winds down, we’re taking a look at which teams generated the most searches over the year. We previously put out our 2010 Overall Most Searched Rankings, or what was most searched for on the website overall, whether it be a ballgame, a musical artist, or a theatre production.  Sports teams dominated the  overall top 10. In fact, six of the ten were all sports teams from around the country.

There is no real down time in the world of sports. It seems there is always something going on, whether it be the mid-summer MLB season or the springtime intensity of NCAA March Madness. So how do teams stack up against one another? Below you will find the hottest franchises of 2010, based on fan searches.

Hottest Franchises of 2010

1. New York Yankees
2. San Francisco Giants
3. Boston Red Sox
4. Boston Celtics
5. Los Angeles Lakers
6. Chicago Blackhawks
7. New York Mets
8. Texas Rangers
9. Philadelphia Phillies
10. Boston Bruins
11. New York Knicks
12. New York Jets
13. Los Angeles Dodgers
14. Chicago Cubs
15. Minnesota Twins

The New York Yankees are the overall #1 most searched, and it wasn’t close. With more than double the searches of the next team (the San Francisco Giants) the Yankees remain the hottest franchise in sports. We’ve covered the Yankees all year on our New York Blog: check it out if you’re a die-hard Yankees fan always looking to score some Yankees tickets.

Everyone knows Boston is obsessed with their sports teams, and our data proves this point, placing the Boston Red Sox, Celtics, and Bruins all within the Top 15 Most Searched. The Red Sox had a tough year, missing the playoffs, but the Celtics are on a tear, atop their division and looking well ready for a solid push into the playoffs. Seen our Boston Blog? Check it out for all the best info on Boston tickets.

The two MLB World Series contestants are in our top 15: no doubt, the excitement generated around this event drove up search inputs for both the Texas Rangers and the San Francisco Giants. Los Angeles sports fans made a strong showing as well: the Lakers and the Dodgers both grab a spot in the illustrious top 15.

If you’re like us, and have been patiently waiting the start to the 2010-2011 NBA season, the countdown is on. We are less than a week away, and the first games of the season are well within reach.

The season officially kicks off on Tuesday October 26 when the Miami Heat play the Boston Celtics at home. But “opening day” is really the 27th, when 26 teams start their campaign for the playoffs. For and intents and purposes, we combined the two days when analyzing ticket data for NBA Opening Day tickets.

What more can be said about the Miami Heat? Dwayne Wade, Lebron James, and Chris Bosh all ended up in South Beach after a tumultuous off-season that involved a free agency consisting of basketball’s best. Say what you will about how the deals went down, or which town got burned the worst, but in the end, the Heat are one of the most hyped teams the league has ever known. The excitement the team has generated in South Beach and around the nation is unquestioned. Whether or not the Miami Heat will live up to the expectations (they’re favored in Vegas to win the NBA Championship) is a different story.

The biggest question surrounding the Heat this season is how two of the most dominating individual players will play together on the same team. Wade had his Heat, Lebron led the Cavaliers. Now they’re on the same team. Who is going to take the last second, game winning shot? Who will lead the team in scoring? All Lebron and Dwayne have ever done was lead, so who is going to take the back seat?

Much of that depends on how the other pieces of the puzzle fit together. Chris Bosh was good in Toronto with the Raptors, but will be able to stand up to the Dwight Howard’s and Kevin Garnett’s of the league, enough so to take some of the heat off James and Wade?

The Super Friends in Miami have been compared to the Boston Three Party of 2008. The Celtics brought in Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett to accompany Paul Pierce, and then surrounded the three with mediocre talent. They won the Championship that year. So is this formula of having a core three going to hold up for the Heat? Mario Chalmers, Mike Miller, Joel Anthony and Udonis Haslem will be key components to the machine that is the Heat. Will they be enough for a title?

We asked a lot of questions, and we don’t have any answers. But what we do have are the best possible Heat tickets to see this team in action. You be the judge.

Miami Heat Tickets Preview

This summer, before Lebron had signed to a new team, we speculated on the “Lebron Effect“, i.e. what type of effect Lebron has on ticket prices throughout the country. We found that tickets increased, on average, by 180% when Lebron came to town. We were close: the combination of Wade, Bosh and Lebron pushed Heat tickets up even higher.

Miami Heat tickets are the second hottest this season according to our recent FanDemand Rankings with an average overall ticket price of $311. The Heat’s average price last year? $81. That’s a huge increase of 280%.

Any game the Heat play in is going to be in high demand, from Miami to Oklahoma City to Los Angeles. Here are the Heat’s hottest games of the 2010-2011 NBA Season.

1. Los Angeles Lakers @ Miami Heat, March 10: $365
2. Orlando Magic @ Miami Heat, October 29: $328
3. New York Knicks @ Miami Heat, December 28: $226
4. Boston Celtics @ Miami Heat, November 11: $225
5. Boston Celtics @ Miami Heat, April 10: $212
6. Cleveland Cavaliers @ Miami Heat, December 15: $175
7. Orlando Magic @ Miami Heat, March 3: $173
8. Chicago Bulls @ Miami Heat, March 6: $172
9. Dallas Mavericks @ Miami Heat, December 20: $160
10. Golden State Warriors @ Miami Heat, January 1st: $160

Check out these Best Value tickets for some of the opening games of the Miami Heat’s 2010-20111 season:

Miami Heat @ Boston Celtics, October 26

• The tipoff to the NBA Season, this opener might be one for the ages. The Celtics will be trying to show that age is indeed an advantage, and the Heat need to step up early and prove themselves as a team that can win. This game is the third highest in demand out of all games this season with an average price of $396.
• Get tickets in  Loge 5 for $340, which is 61% off the average price of similar tickets in this area.
• Sit on the Floor, Section 7, for $575. Those tickets are a hefty 60% off the average price.

Miami Heat @ Philadelphia 76ers, October 27

• Philly wants to see Wade and his crew: tickets are some of the highest or the Sixers this year.
• Sit in Upper Center 215 for $35, 54% off the average ticket price.
• Tickets Coutside (Section 101) are only $303, a whole 70% off of the average price of $1012.

Orlando Magic @ Miami Heat, October 29

• The Heat open at home against the Orlando Magic. Dwight Howard is ready for it. Are you?
• Tickets in Lower Level Baseline 101 are going for $275, half off the average price of comparable tickets in the area.
• Or sit in Upper Level Center 325 for $150; thats 40% off the average price.

Remember to check out FanSnap all season long for the best Miami Heat tickets.

The Los Angeles Lakers are going into the 2010-11 season a bit out of the limelight, which is absurd, really. The odds makers in Vegas are favoring the Heat to win it all, not the two-time defending champion Lakers. The Heat are drawing a lot of attention this year due to a few pre-season acquisitions. The Lakers? Well, they have kept basically the same roster intact from last season. The same two time NBA Championship winning roster. And they run their offense through the most dominating player of the last decade, Kobe Bryant.

So how will the proven Lakers stand up to the Heat this season? Who knows. But coach Phil Jackson wins championships in threes; 1991 – 1993 and 1996-1998 with the Bulls, and 2001-2003 with the Lakers. Maybe history will repeat itself and outsmart the odds.

Los Angeles Lakers tickets

According to the season long average price on the secondary market this pre-season, Lakers tickets are the highest in the league with an average overall price of $325 (the Heat are just behind with a price of $310). The Lakers appear 5 times on FanSnap’s Game by Game FanDemand rankings. So, obviously it’s going to be tough to get into Staples Center this year, but thats no different than in years past. Check below for some Best Value tickets you can find on Lakers tickets in the opening weeks of the 2010-2011 NBA Season.

Houston Rockets @ Los Angeles Lakers, October 26

• The Lakers open at home on the official Opening Day of the NBA. Their game against the Rockets is one of the highest in demand during the opening days of the season, with an average price of $292.
• Get tickets in Upper Concourse Side 321 for $110, 40% below the average price of similar tickets in this area.
• Also, find tickets in Loge End 106 for $275, a solid 34% off the average price of $418.

Los Angeles Lakers @ Phoenix Suns, October 29

• A battle between two of the stronger teams in the West, this will be a good one. Can the Suns play without Amare Stoudamire? On paper, they’ve got no one to stand up against the Laker front court, but with the Suns have speed, and lots of it.
• Sit in Courtside Club 123 for 175 bucks a pop: thats a whopping 90% off the average price of $1900.
• You can also grab a ticket in Lower Level Center 101 for $248, half off of 52%, the average price of similar tickets.

Golden State Warriors @ Los Angeles Lakers, October 31

• Halloween at Staples Center: the crowd should be entertaining enough for this one.
• Sit in Upper Concourse Side 332 for $23, which is a pretty well priced ticket, 57% below the average.

Get the best values on the best possible Lakers tickets all season long at FanSnap.

1. Miami Heat @ Los Angeles Lakers 12/25/10: $893
2. Boston Celtics @ Los Angeles Lakers 1/30/11: $615
3. Miami Heat @ Boston Celtics 10/26/10: $396
4. Los Angeles Lakers @ Boston Celtics 2/10/11: $316
5. Los Angeles Lakers @ Los Angeles Clippers 1/16/11: $313
6. Miami Heat @ Houston Rockets 12/29/10: $309
7. Orlando Magic @ Los Angeles Lakers 3/14/11: $306
8. Denver Nuggets @ Los Angeles Lakers 4/3/11: $296
9. Miami Heat @ New York Knicks 1/27/11: $288
10. Oklahoma City Thunder @ Los Angeles Lakers 1/17/11: $288

When Lebron James was still “deciding” on where to play this season, there was a lot of speculation on the impact of signing King James would have on the business side of any team (we had our own thoughts). In New York, even the stock market fluctuated as ‘Bron ‘Bron entertained the idea of calling NYC his home. Well, even though he’s in Miami now, New York is still amped to see the Superfriends: when the Heat visit Madison Square Garden this season, tickets are averaging $288 (overall average prices for Knicks tickets this season is around $200… see below).

This December, you might find yourself saying “All I want for Christmas are some Heat-Lakers tickets”. That’s because on Christmas Day, the revamped Miami Heat head out west to take on the Los Angeles Lakers in what many think is a preview of the 2010 NBA Finals. This game is by far the hottest on our FanDemand rankings, by a good $250 (a quick $20,000 will get you a seat on the floor).

In fact, the Lakers appear five times on the top ten. So, are the Lakers the hottest team in the league?

2010-2011 NBA Season FanDemand Rankings: Hottest Teams in the League

Overall, Los Angeles Lakers tickets are the hottest in the league, followed closely by (you guessed it) the Miami Heat.

This time last year, Heat tickets were averaging $93, and now they are at $311. That’s a 234% increase from ’09-’10. How about Cleveland Cavalier tickets? They’ve dropped by 23$, from $151 in ’09 to $116 in 2010.

There are some interesting teams within these FanDemand rankings, though. The Utah Jazz and the Toronto Raptors have a higher overall average ticket price than the Boston Celtics, who have some of the most passionate fans in the world.

Check out FanSnap throughout the season to see how these teams move in and out of the FanDemand Rankings. As we have seen in our NFL FanDemand, a teams success or failure definitely affects the demand for tickets. So check back for updated FanDemand Rankings as the 2010-2011 NBA season progress’s.

At yesterday’s NBA media day, Dwayne Wade commented on how “It seems like years since July. … So we’re happy to [finally] get to the basketball side.” (ESPN.com) Well, I am too. Glad to be done with the majority of the drama series that has been the Summer of 2010 for the NBA. Once ‘Melo wraps up his recent soap opera in Denver, all is left to do is sit back and watch some basketball.

As much as “The Decision” may have mustered up some negative feelings about King James a few months back, one thing is for certain: it is going to be flat out exhilarating watching the Superfriends play ball together. So much so, signing up for the NBA League Pass seems like a must, just to watch the Heat tear through the 2010-2011 NBA season.

And to see Wade, James, and Bosh in person, in the same jersey, at an NBA game this season? That will be an experience, to say the least. As always, FanSnap has basketball fans covered on Miami Heat tickets. Throughout the season, we’ll help Heat fans, basketball fans, and Superfriends fans alike get the best values on NBA tickets.

Miami Heat tickets for the 2010-2011 NBA Season

With such a potent trio in South Beach, it is understandable that the Heat are featured in the opening game of the season, up north in Boston against the Celtics. This is a seriously popular game: with an average ticket price of $409, it’s one of the hottest non-playoff events we’ve seen. Heat-Celtics tickets are hotter than hotcakes right now, but FanSnap can still help you find some great deals on tickets.

Fans in Miami will be near hysteria when the Heat open up the 2010-2011 at home against the Orlando Magic on October 29th. After that 13,000 plus, play-off like celebration when Bosh and Lebron landed in Miami, imagine how pumped South Beach will be if the Heat dominate their in state rivals. The average price for Magic-Heat tickets is $331.  Last month, it was one hundred dollars higher at $435. (the drop is due to the increase in tickets available on the secondary market.).

After Week 1, we looked at three different Heat home games and what floor seats cost to each. New Years Day tickets are the highest priced, as expected, but its also good to see that Heat fans are ready to welcome the bitter Cleveland Cavaliers into their home stadium.

• Golden State Warriors @ Miami Heat, January 1: Floor Seats from $8600 to $9243
  
• Cleveland Cavaliers @ Miami Heat, December 15: Floor seats from $5750 to $6162
  
• Toronto Raptors @ Miami Heat, January 22: Floor Seats from $4600 to $5000
  

We also looked at some of the hotter match-ups throughout the season. Below is the average ticket price (as determined by the FanSnap 60) to each game, which can give fans an idea of which games are the “hottest”, toughest-to-find-tickets-to games this season.

1. Los Angeles Lakers @ Miami Heat, March 10: $376
2. Boston Celtics @ Miami Heat, November 11: $242
3. Orlando Magic @ Miami Heat, March 3: $188
4. Chicago Bulls @ Miami Heat, March 6: $181
5. Oklahoma City Thunder @ Miami Heat, March 16: $160

Lakers-Heat tickets take top spot by about $130, and this match-up may look a lot like what the 2011 NBA Finals look like if all goes to plan in Miami and Los Angeles. (A side note… when the Heat head west to take on the Lakers at the Staples Center, tickets, on average, are going for $935. Get ready.)

Need great tickets to a hot live event?  There’s now an app for that.

We are excited to announce the launch of the FanSnap Application for iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad.  Our live-event tickets iPhone application is free in the iTunes app store [link] just in time for the NFL and NCAA football seasons, the approaching MLB playoffs, the concert and Broadway seasons, and the announcement of the new NBA schedule.

Perfect for fans who are looking for hot, even sold out, events, while they are on the go, the FanSnap tickets app puts 15 million sports, theater and concert tickets in your pocket!  With the FanSnap app, fans who want to catch a nearby game, concert, or show – even the same day – can find and buy tickets from their iPhone.

With the FanSnap tickets app, you can:

• See a list of the hottest live events nearby using the iPhone’s built-in location finder.
• Access local sports teams, concert and theater events via one-touch icons that the app automatically generates.
• Refer to FanSnap’s detailed venue maps, including row level labeling.
• See photos of the view from sections of the venue (available for many venues).
• Access previous saved searches for their favorite teams, performing artists, or shows.
• Click through to buy online, or even call to buy tickets with quick one-touch dialing.

No matter where you are,  you can find the best sports, theater, and concert tickets for less with the FanSnap app. The mobile ‘web app’ version of FanSnap.com was recently named one of Boston Globe Magazine’s ‘15 Must-Have Local Apps.’  We have improved upon that with the addition of the maps and venue photos with the goal of making the FanSnap app an indispensable resource for fans.

The FanSnap app is particularly useful for spur of the moment ticket buying, business travelers, and vacationing fans.  FanSnap search results include tickets from dozens of the most trusted ticket companies in the U.S., so a search, for example, for tickets behind home plate to tonight’s game, or for concerts playing locally this weekend for less than $50 a ticket, is a snap.

Here are a few screenshots: