Saturday, June 14, 2008

There is a lot of concern in Washington, DC and elsewhere in this country about inflation, given the recent run-up in the prices of oil and food. Have our inflation problems spilled over to the cost of exclusive, celebrity-only courtside tickets for the NBA Finals?

As our last post noted, courtside tickets for Game 4 of the NBA Finals in Los Angeles were listed for almost $38,000 per ticket on StubHub.com, up from the high of $28,000 per ticket that we saw on StubHub for Game 3 in L.A. Now, courtside tickets for Game 5 are selling for over $54,000! That's an increase of over 40% over Game 4.

We don't know if these tickets ever actually sell or if the sellers just list them with the hope of getting lucky. The tickets going for over $54,000 are courtside next to the Lakers bench. We've seen Adam Sandler and Baron Davis sitting together in those seats during this year's playoffs, and Larry David was spotted there at Game 4 of the Finals a couple of days ago. Do we really think that Larry, Adam, and Baron are shelling out this kind of dough for these tickets? Or do the Lakers give them away for free to these celebs just so they help set the stage for the big Hollywood sports event?

Courtside tickets in Boston for Game 6 (which may or may not be necessary) are going for more than what we saw for the first two games of the Finals played in Boston. Perhaps it's just common sense that the later we get in the series, the more expensive the tickets run. Let's hope that this isn't another sign of inflation seeping into our economy. We wouldn't want our favorite Hollywood celebs to have to scale back any of their expensive habits.

To search for courtside seats or other tickets to the NBA Finals, click here