$1,236 ticket for Knicks' banner-raising opener vs. LeBron James' 76ers is most expensive regular-season NBA game ever for this resale market
Knicks guard Landry Shamet after his overtime three-pointer during Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals at Madison Square Garden. Credit: Newsday/J. Conrad Williams Jr.
The defending NBA champion Knicks started to sell single-game tickets this week, but one game in the 2026-’27 season is one of the hottest tickets in recent memory.
The Knicks’ Oct. 20 season opener at Madison Square Garden against LeBron James and the Philadelphia 76ers is being sold on the resale market for a get-in price of $1,236, according to online ticket reseller TickPick. It is currently the most expensive regular-season game in NBA history.
With a little over a month to go until the Knicks raise the championship banner from their first title in 53 years, demand is strong because “everybody wants to be there,” said Kyle Zorn, TickPick’s director of content and a former Stony Brook University lacrosse player.
Tickets on various sites such as TickPick, TicketMaster and StubHub are being offered for no less than $1,236 and for as much as $31,435.
“It seems like the Knicks the last few years, even before when they made the Finals, the demand was through the roof,” Zorn said. “Through the Finals last year, obviously we saw just extraordinary prices. This year, opening up against LeBron and the 76ers, opening night, it’s the most expensive regular-season game we’ve ever had on record. Even at that price, tickets are still being bought. It’s still in very high demand. We’re seeing sales come through very steady.”
For the season, Knicks home games are selling for an average price of $611, according to TickPick. The next-highest average price for an NBA team is $300 for the Boston Celtics.
The Knicks’ Christmas Day game against their NBA Finals foes, the San Antonio Spurs, has a get-in price of $537, according to TickPick.
The “good” news for basketball-starved Knicks fans who just want to see the defending champions in person without having to take out a second mortgage is that some of the less marquee games are available for about $200-$250 a ticket on the secondary market.
“It drops down significantly,” Zorn said. “I think that opening game just has every factor that would lead to that price being what it is. The next home game that they have [Oct. 25 vs. Orlando] drops down to $200. That tends to be where prices are for a home game for the Knicks, about $200 to $250 depending on the matchup, day of the week, etc. The dropoff is pretty significant after opening night.”
Anthony Rieber covers sports media and business and professional sports (you know, games and trades and things). He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since Jan. 1, 2026.
