Skip to content
‹ Back to IndustriesSports & Entertainment

Secondary Ticket Market Prices Spike with LeBron James on the Verge of History

38,387 points. That’s the number of points scored by all-time NBA points leader Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. And all that separates LeBron James from surpassing that number is 36 points. LeBron’s career average is 27.2 points scored per game. That number puts James on pace to overtake Jabbar’s record on February 9 when the Lakers face the…

This story was produced through MarketScale. See how Sports & Entertainment teams put it to work with Events & Onsite Capture.

Promoted content from Suite Talk: The Business Behind Sports on MarketScale.

·
Share

Free workspace

Turn your Sports & Entertainment expertise into content.

Record interviews, organize footage, and write with AI on a free trial of the MarketScale platform for qualifying companies. No demo required, no credit card.

Try it Free

38,387 points. That’s the number of points scored by all-time NBA points leader Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. And all that separates LeBron James from surpassing that number is 36 points. LeBron’s career average is 27.2 points scored per game. That number puts James on pace to overtake Jabbar’s record on February 9 when the Lakers face the Milwaukee Bucks in Los Angeles.

Tuesday evening’s contest vs. The Oklahoma City Thunder is James’ first opportunity to break the record before Thursday’s game against the bucks. With two chances to make history on his home court, tickets are going fast.

Not all games are equal in the secondary ticket market, and neither are the prices. The average secondary ticket market price for Tuesday’s contest is fetching an average of $94 per ticket, while the average price for Thursday’s matchup is going for an average of $585 per ticket at present.

Why the disparity? Well, hedging bets on history is a significant part of the story, but so is the opponent. The Milwaukee Bucks have something The Oklahoma City Thunder don’t have, star forward Giannis Antetokounmpo. Lakers vs. Bucks. James vs. Antetokounmpo. James vs. history. For secondary ticket market buyers, there is one must-purchase seat.

Director of the Sports Business program at Washington University in St. Louis and “Suite Talk: The Business Behind Sports” host, Patrick Rishe, is excited for this historic moment, as he adds up all the variables surrounding the race to buy seats.

Suite Talk: The Business Behind Sports

Part of this channel

Suite Talk: The Business Behind Sports

Sports business economics explained by a Washington University professor.

Visit the channel

Your experts belong here

Every story in MarketScale Sports & Entertainment starts with a company putting its venue operators, production crews, and partnership teams on the record. Buyers are already reading this topic. The only question is whose experts they find.

Rights holders and partners back the operators they know, and coverage is how they get to know yours.

Book DemoSee how it works15 minutes, straight to a calendar.
B2B Weekly

The week in Sports & Entertainment, and sixteen other industries, every Monday.

Ten stories, one-line takes, five minutes. Free.

Sports & Entertainment: are you visible to AI?

Before they reach out, Sports & Entertainment buyers ask AI engines which vendors to trust. Explore how your experts, customers, and partners can become useful content for buyers and AI search.

Free Trial

You just read one Sports & Entertainment expert. Your company is full of them.

This article was produced through MarketScale. The same platform turns your venue operators, production crews, and partnership teams into the articles, video, and social content Sports & Entertainment buyers are searching for. Start a free trial and see it with your own people. For qualifying companies, no credit card, no demo required.

NPS +73 · 1,000+ creators · 38+ countries

What your free trial includes

Hands-on access to the MarketScale platform
Media requests to your crowd, remote recording, AI writing tools
No demo required. No credit card.
For qualifying companies. Company confirmation required.

More Sports & Entertainment Insights

X Games hires former UFC and Williams Racing executive to sell X Games and its new league

X Games hires former UFC and Williams Racing executive to sell X Games and its new league

Paul Asencio, formerly of UFC and Williams Racing, starts as X Games chief revenue officer on November 9. He will oversee sponsorship sales across X Games and the MoonPay X Games League, which says 7.5 million viewers watched more than one summer stop. The league's first winter season opens in January 2027.

  • 01The MoonPay X Games League turns the X Games from standalone events into eight clubs across two seasons, and every club is another line a partnerships team can put on a rate card.

Nov 1, 2026

Cleveland Guardians' new cloud phone system saves IT 20 to 30 hours a week

Cleveland Guardians' new cloud phone system saves IT 20 to 30 hours a week

TTx's Maven Cloud, built on Intermedia's platform, integrated with the Cleveland Guardians' existing Microsoft Teams and Dynamics 365 environment and frees 20 to 30 IT hours weekly. The contact center was the pilot for a club-wide rollout.

  • 01The clearest payoff from the Guardians' cloud calling move shows up in staff time: 20 to 30 IT hours a week no longer spent maintaining an on-premises phone system.
  • 02The fan-facing contact center went first, and only after it worked did the club start extending the same platform to phones, messaging and video across the organization.

Oct 31, 2026

MLB sponsorship revenue rose 57% since 2022 on just 17% more deals

MLB sponsorship revenue rose 57% since 2022 on just 17% more deals

MLB teams generated $2.12 billion in 2026 sponsorship revenue, up 7.3%, while deal count rose 1.2%, according to SponsorUnited. Since 2022, revenue has climbed 57% on 17% more deals. That gap suggests the average deal is worth considerably more, though mix effects could explain part of it, leaving renewal packages bigger and priced differently than past agreements.

  • 01Jersey sleeve patches now sit on all 30 MLB teams, making the sleeve a standard premium line item in baseball inventory.

Oct 30, 2026

Explore More Sports & Entertainment Insights

Read more expert perspectives from across Sports & Entertainment.

Browse Sports & Entertainment Hub

For B2B teams

Your experts could be publishing here

Stories like this one run on content MarketScale captures from real practitioners. See how your team's expertise becomes coverage in Sports & Entertainment and beyond.

Book a Demo

Or call us. No forms required. We pick up. 214-945-2512