April 23, 2015
(UPDATE 4/23/15) Many series in the NBA Playoffs are 2-0 heading into Game 3, but only the Washington Wizards were able to take that 2-0 series advantage home. Washington was able to win both games at Air Canada Centre, bringing the commanding series lead to Verizon Center for Game 3. Wizards playoff tickets, however, will be significantly less expensive on the secondary market than in Toronto. The average price for Games 3 and 4 is currently $164.72, 58% below Games 1 and 2 in Toronto.
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2015 Raptors vs Wizards Playoff Tickets Now 84% Higher at Air Canada Centre than Verizon Center
(4/20/2015) It took overtime, but the Washington Wizards were able to come away with a 93-86 win over the Toronto Raptors in Game 1 of their NBA Playoffs series. Toronto will be looking to even the series at home in Game 2 on Tuesday night. The average price of Raptors playoff tickets for Game 2 on the secondary market is $233.73. The series will shift the the Verizon Center on Friday, but secondary market prices are 84% more expensive in Toronto. Wizards playoff tickets across Games 3, 4 and 6 have an average price of $186.71.
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Struggle has been abound in both Toronto and D.C., where the Raptors and Wizards have continued to play forgettable basketball since the All-Star Break. However in a fairly weak Eastern Conference, those forgettable halves were enough for the Raptors to grab the No. 4 seed and the Wizards the No. 5. The two teams will meet in the first round of the playoffs this season, and Raptors playoff tickets on the secondary market will be more than twice the price at the Air Canada Centre than at the Verizon Center during the quarterfinals.
The average secondary price for the seven-game series is $244.80. According to TicketIQ, Raptors playoff tickets average $401.73 on the resale market, 123% above Toronto’s regular season average. The $199 average at Air Canada Centre was the seventh most expensive in the NBA during the regular season.
Games played in Toronto during the series are currently 101.2% higher than the $199.67 price that Wizards playoff tickets are averaging in the nation’s capital. The exorbitant premium is largely due to the disparity in ticket inventory between both arenas, however, as the Wizards post nearly four times the amount of tickets on the secondary market than the Raptors do at home. With smaller inventory, the Raptors are seeing significantly higher ticket prices than the Wizards, who are seeing nearly 5,000 available tickets on the resale for each home game in the first round.
Washington had just the 22nd highest regular season average at $96. Wizards playoff tickets hold a 108% premium above the cost of regular season games.
The Raptors swept their three-game season series with the Wizards and enter the postseason with the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference. The Wizards clinched the fifth seed in the conference at 46-36, finishing three games behind the 49-33 Raptors. Game 1 will tip off in Toronto on Saturday at 12:30pm.
