Knicks ticket prices for Game 1 vs. Cavaliers top $12,000 in asking price on second market
Knicks fans in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference First Round Playoffs at Madison Square Garden last month. Credit: Newsday/William Perlman
Tuesday night’s Game 1 of the Knicks-Cavaliers series at the Garden could end up as the most expensive conference finals resale ticket ever with an average purchase price of $1,078 as of Monday morning, according to the online ticket seller TickPick.
The previous high according to TickPick was Game 7 of the 2023 Eastern Conference Finals between the Celtics and Heat, which averaged $1,043.
The cheapest ticket on TickPick for the Knicks’ series opener was going for $501.
On SeatGeek, tickets at center court just behind the front-row VIP seats were listed from $12,000 to more than $24,000. The lowest-priced tickets on that site were going for $516.
“The anticipation from Knicks fans for tomorrow’s Game 1 at MSG is at an all-time high,” said Kyle Zorn, director of content at TickPick and a former Stony Brook lacrosse player. “Prices will only increase as the series advances into potential close-out games. Should the Knicks ultimately have a chance to clinch an NBA Finals berth at home in Game 5 or 7, we’ll see prices rise to a whole other level.”
On StubHub, within an hour of Cleveland advancing to face the Knicks by beating Detroit in Game 7 on Sunday night, tickets for Knicks-Cavaliers Game 1 were selling fast and were not selling cheap. Tickets were listed at a minimum of $497 and a maximum of more than $10,000.
According to StubHub, nearly 300 tickets to the game were sold on the site within one hour of Cleveland's victory.
On Ticketmaster, resale tickets were being listed at a starting price of $463 each for a pair in the 400 sections. Tickets on the 100 level were being listed for as much as $1,265.
The Knicks, as the East's No. 3 seed, have homecourt advantage over the fourth-seeded Cavaliers, so there could be up to four games at the Garden.
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.
