December 20, 2019
If you’re looking for a way to spend your Christmas Day, the NBA has you covered, with five games across the country starting at noon ET with the Boston Celtics at the Toronto Raptors and the final tip-off at 10:30 p.m. featuring the New Orleans Pelicans at the Denver Nuggets.
Where To Buy NBA Christmas Day Tickets
Primary market tickets are available to all games, except the Los Angeles Clippers vs. Los Angeles Lakers game at Staples Center, which is sold out on primary partner AXS.
On the secondary market, TicketIQ has seats to all games, and offers a Low Price Guarantee on all Christmas Day games in addition to Low Price Guarantees on all sold out NBA tickets. That means that if you find a secondary market ticket for less on a site like StubHub or Vivid, we’ll give you 200% of the difference in ticket credit. TicketIQ customers save up to 25%.
How Much Are NBA Christmas Day Tickets
On TicketIQ, the priciest game of the bunch will be the Clippers at Lakers game, which is trending at a $1,405 average asking price, while the cheapest game will be the New Orleans Pelicans at Denver Nuggets game, which has an average asking price of $205.
The average asking price of all Christmas Day games is $587.40 on the secondary market, making it the priciest Christmas Day since TicketIQ began tracking data in 2011. If the Clippers-Lakers average holds, it will be the priciest Christmas Day game of the decade. To date, the next two priciest were $1,292 for last year’s Los Angeles Lakers at Golden State Warriors game and $1,011 for the Cleveland Cavaliers at Golden State Warriors game in 2015.
Boston Celtics at Toronto Raptors
- Where: Scotiabank Arena
- Time: 12 p.m.
- Secondary market average asking price: $410
- Secondary market cheapest ticket: $91
- Primary market cheapest ticket: $141
Milwaukee Bucks at Philadelphia 76ers
- Where: Wells Fargo Center
- Time: 2:30 p.m.
- Secondary market average asking price: $245
- Secondary market cheapest ticket: $73
- Primary market cheapest ticket: $59
Houston Rockets at Golden State Warriors
- Where: Chase Center
- Time: 5 p.m.
- Secondary market average asking price: $672
- Secondary market cheapest ticket: $105
- Primary market cheapest ticket: $155
Los Angeles Clippers at Los Angeles Lakers
- Where: Staples Center
- Time: 8 p.m.
- Secondary market average asking price: $1,405
- Secondary market cheapest ticket: $339
- Primary market cheapest ticket: Sold out
New Orleans Pelicans at Denver Nuggets
- Where: Pespi Center
- Time: 10:30 p.m.
- Secondary market average asking price: $205
- Secondary market cheapest ticket: $15
- Primary market cheapest ticket: $49
TicketIQ is committed to the cheapest tickets possible, and we make much less on sold out tickets compared to other major marketplaces like StubHub and Vivid. That means ticket buyers save from up to 25% on TicketIQ on sports, music and theater. We're able to do this because we also work with teams, venues, and other ticket owners, to help them sell tickets at face price, directly to consumers like you, through Ticketmaster and AXS. For an overview of the 2019 NBA Ticket Buying landscape, and details on the cheapest way to get tickets for every team, visit the TicketIQ Blog.
Warriors-Lakers Christmas Day Tickets Are Most Most Expensive This Decade (2018)
The NBA on Christmas Day has been a tradition since 1947 and this year will be no different. Missing from the lineup, however, will be the traditional NBA Finals rematch. After LeBron James left the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Los Angeles Lakers in the offseason, the league instead will feature the Lakers at the Golden State Warriors, who beat the Cavs in the Finals, as its premiere game.
Demand for that game is sky high -- the highest in a decade of Christmas Day games, according to secondary ticket marketplace TicketIQ.com. Fans have pushed the average asking price to $1,292. The next most expensive December 25 game in history was the 2015 Warriors-Cleveland Cavaliers game, which settled at $1,011. That game was a rematch of the 2015 Finals, in which the Warriors beat the Cavs in six games. Golden State and Cleveland played in four consecutive Ginals before James headed West.
The Philadelphia 76ers at Boston Celtics game is the only other one of this year's five December 25 games to make it into the Top 10 for the decade in terms of price. That game is ranked No. 10 and has a current average asking price of $459. The 2011 Los Angeles Clippers-Warriors game, which had an average asking price of $98, was the cheapest of the decade.
This year's $514.54 average asking price across all games is the highest of the decade. The cheapest since 2011 was 2013, when the average was $250.13.
Below is a look at how all five Christmas Day are shaping up:
Los Angeles Lakers at Golden State Warriors
- Where: Oracle Arena
- Average asking price: $1,292
- Get-in price: $280
LeBron James' first game as a Laker against Golden State is driving demand for this game. It doesn't hurt that both the Warriors and Lakers are among the top four teams in the West. This game is the most expensive Christmas Day game of 2018 and of the decade, according to TicketIQ.com. Both teams played on Christmas Day last year, but neither have a winning record on December 25.
Philadelphia 76ers at Boston Celtics
- Where: TD Garden
- Average asking price: $459
- Get-in price: $117
The 76ers are traditionally considered the Celtics second biggest rival behind the Lakers, and certainly their biggest rival in the East. This year, games between the two will have added value because both the Celtics and the 76ers are among the top-tier teams in the East. The rivalry dates to 1949 and includes an NBA-record 21 playoff meetings. This game has the second highest average asking price for a Christmas Day game on the secondary market, according to TicketIQ.com, and is the priciest of two (2018, 2017) played at TD Garden. Last year’s Christmas Day game had a final average asking price of $194.
Milwaukee Bucks at New York Knicks
- Where: Madison Square Garden
- Average asking price: $441
- Get-in price: $185
The Knicks hold the distinction of playing in the most Christmas Day games (52) of any team in the league, and have the most wins (22) and most losses (30). This time around, the Knicks will be hosting a non-traditional opponent in the Milwaukee Bucks, who last played on Christmas Day in 1977. The Knicks and Bucks have played at least twice a season since 1968, and the Bucks hold a 110-102 all-time series advantage. This year's game is the fifth most expensive Christmas Day game involving the Knicks this decade. The most expensive was in 2011, when fans paid an average of $515 to see the Knicks host the Celtics. At $441, this year's average asking price is the third highest on the secondary market among 2018 Christmas Day games.
Oklahoma City Thunder at Houston Rockets
- Where: Toyota Center
- Average asking price: $257
- Get-in price: $43
The Thunder and Rockets have met regularly since 1969, albeit under other franchise names -- the Thunder were previously the Seattle SuperSonics and the Rockets franchise started in San Diego. The rivalry is very evenly matched, though the Thunder hold a 110-107 all-time series advantage. The Thunder have one of the worst Christmas Day records in the NBA at 5-13, but did beat the Rockets last year. This game is a rematch of 2017 December 25 game, and is the second of four meetings between the teams this season. At $257, this is the second cheapest Christmas Day game of 2018.
Portland Trail Blazers at Utah Jazz
- Where: Vivint Smart Home Arena
- Average asking price: $124
- Get-in price: $38
Neither of these teams has been a Christmas Day regular, but both have winning records on this date. The Trail Blazers (14-3) have the second best Christmas Day record in the NBA, behind only the Miami Heat (10-2). Portland's last appearance on December 25 was in 2010 and Utah's was in 1997. This game will be the second of four meetings between these teams this season, and has the lowest average asking price across this year's Christmas Day games.
Want to be in the house when an NBA game tips off on Christmas Day? Be prepared to pay the highest price since 2011, when the cost of an average NBA ticket to a Christmas Day game was $403.94.
How much more? At least $100. As of Dec. 19, according to TicketIQ.com data, the average asking price for the five Christmas games was $503.55. Of course, that number is heavily skewed by the much-anticipated NBA Finals rematch between the defending champion Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers. That game, which will be played in Oakland, currently has a secondary market asking price of $818, making it the second most expensive Christmas Day game since TicketIQ.com started tracking data. The most expensive Christmas game in history was the 2015 Cavaliers at Warriors matchup, which ran an average of $1,010.81. The third priciest ticket cost $786.68 when the Clippers played the Lakers also in 2015.
After the Cavaliers-Warriors game this year, the next most expensive ticket is the rivalry game between the Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, which has a current asking price of $468.92. The cost of a ticket to the remaining three Christmas games are: $268.39 for the Timberwolves at the Lakers; $253.75 for the Western Conference-leading Rockets at the Thunder; and $193.62 for the Wizards at the Eastern Conference-leading Boston Celtics.
For the seven years that TicketIQ.com has been tracking data, the only venue that has hosted a game every season is Staples Center, home to both the Lakers and Clippers. Madison Square Garden has hosted five Christmas Day games, including consecutive games in 2016-2017 and 2013-2015. Only the Thunder has played on every Christmas Day since 2011, while the Lakers, Clippers and Golden State Warriors have played six of the last seven years.
No matter what game you want to try to see, TicketIQ.com is your place to buy tickets. Among TicketIQ.com’s Low Price Guarantee listings, fans can snag tickets to the Cavaliers-Warriors game for $221 for seats in Section 223 near the top of the arena or for $4,084 for a floor-level seat in Section 14 near center court.
