How NBA teams try to keep opposing fans out of their arenas during the playoffs

In the NBA playoffs, protecting home court extends from the hardwood to the box office.

After Joel Embiid’s Philadelphia 76ers rallied from a 3-1 series deficit in the first round, the 2023 NBA MVP had one request as his team prepared to face the New York Knicks.

“I just have a message for our fans,” Embiid said after the Sixers won Game 7 in Boston to eliminate the Celtics. “Last time we played the Knicks, it felt like this was Madison Square Garden East (sic). We’re going to need the support.

“Don’t sell your tickets. This is bigger than you. We need you guys.”

He even offered to help fans who might need to sell their tickets because of financial need.

“If you need money,” Embiid joked, “I got you.”

While some people laughed at the request, it wasn’t an unreasonable ask. Embiid only said what others were thinking: You want to see us win? Show up and help us out in the best way you can.

Historically, in every sport, the advantage of being at home is something every team has worked to have. But that advantage has dissolved in some arenas thanks to the booming resale market and some pettiness. Playing in front of your fans is crucial and emotional. Players also say fans can put pressure on officials and opponents. It’s not the kind of strategy a coach can scheme for, but it is sort of a psychological advantage. It adds some gravity to the arguments of fans who use “we” when discussing their favorite team.

“Every little run, the crowd gets hyped. You get hyped with the crowd,” the Indiana Pacers’ Aaron Nesmith said during the 2025 NBA Finals. “You feed off the energy. Makes it tough for them. They got to fight against 20,000 people in here.”

If a series has a Game 7, every player wants that shot to win it all at home, a shot Nesmith and his Pacers did not have in 2025. After losing Tyrese Haliburton to an Achilles tear in the first quarter, the Pacers lost Game 7 on the road to the Oklahoma City Thunder. Of the 78 teams with home court advantage in the NBA Finals (excluding the Orlando bubble in 2020), 57 have gone on to win the championship. Players are well aware of the palpable edge they have with a friendly home crowd.

In this year’s Eastern Conference finals, the Knicks will play the Cavaliers in Cleveland for Games 3 and 4. And once again, the home team is doing all it can to keep opposing fans away.

The day after the Knicks’ epic comeback in Game 1 in New York, Cavs season ticket holders received an email stating “ticket access for games at Rocket Arena will be limited to fans with billing addresses in select areas of Ohio, Pennsylvania and New York.” This was just days after Cavs owner Dan Gilbert bused fans to Detroit for Game 7 … and Cleveland beat the Pistons.

Embiid’s Sixers also used geographical restrictions to help ensure the crowd was on their side. In an attempt to help maintain home-court advantage, the Sixers restricted ticket sales for Games 3 and 4 of their semifinal series at Xfinity Mobile Arena by ZIP code — a practice known as geofencing. The Sixers also went so far as to donate 500 tickets and buy some themselves to keep New York fans out.

But it didn’t work. In fact, it backfired horribly. According to one report, one Knicks fan in the Philadelphia area spent more than $18,000 to help Knicks fans circumvent the ZIP code restrictions.

Game 3 in Philly sounded as if the crowd was mostly split, but Game 4 looked and sounded like a Knicks home game. As New York built its lead, one couldn’t help but notice the crowd noise for the team in blue and orange. And they were loud.

As the Knicks continued to step on the gas, hitting a record number of 3-pointers, the New York crowd got louder and louder. It was the nightmare Embiid had warned against. Knicks fans took the idea of being blocked from seeing their beloved team as a challenge.

New York won both the games and the attendance battle. After they had secured the 144-114 win and the sweep, Knicks supporters could be seen taking over a concourse in the area during a local news broadcast.

Tough scenes in Philly after the Sixers were swept by the Knicks. pic.twitter.com/0xh04fwsIX

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) May 10, 2026

For the Sixers, the “Let’s Go Knicks!” chants echoing throughout their arena in an embarrassing loss were like salt in an open wound.

“I used to think Philly was a sports town,” Knicks guard Josh Hart, who played for four years at Villanova University, said after the game. “I don’t know if it is anymore.”

But New York fans don’t just travel well because they’re passionate. They also travel because of the expense of attending a game at Madison Square Garden. It’s far cheaper to see a game in cities like Philadelphia, which is drivable, or Cleveland. According to The Action Network, a family of four at a Knicks home playoff game spends roughly 2.7 times more than at a Cleveland home playoff game, with ticket costs before food, drinks, merchandise or parking are even considered. Those savings can be an enticing reason for Knicks fans to swarm away games, especially as their team inches closer to what they hope is a banner year.

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How Did We Get Here?

Knicks’ conference finals ticket prices run rampant as NBA Finals pursuit continues

In 1999, the average regular-season ticket price for the Knicks that year was $79 per game. This year, it was $815.

Instead of buying tickets at the home team’s ticket or box office as fans once did, fans now use ticket brokers and third-party sites to make their purchases, not the original point of sale. It’s almost as if it triggers the petty parts within a fandom that not only want to see their team win, but they also want organizations to know that efforts to keep them out served as a motivational challenge.

Despite their best efforts to keep opposing fans out of their buildings, recent efforts have seemed to have fallen short, yet teams still try.

So, how did we even get here anyway?

More than 25 years ago, during the NHL playoffs, Washington Capitals owner Ted Leonsis’ staff wrote a computer program to prevent Pittsburgh Penguins fans from buying tickets on the Capitals’ website. Ticketing procedures are entirely up to the team, so it wasn’t the first time an organization wanted only the most supportive fans in the building.

The move reversed what had been a growing issue for the Capitals as their home games against the Penguins typically sounded like a Pittsburgh game. But the Capitals’ staff’s geofencing kept the attendance numbers in Washington’s favor. They won the first game of the best-of-seven series, 1-0.

Ticket purchasing wasn’t as advanced as it is today, and the effort prevented fans with western Pennsylvania area codes from buying online. Pittsburgh supporters were forced to skip the game in person or drive to D.C. and purchase at the box office.

A quarter century later, the Thunder used geofencing during the 2025 playoffs for their series against the Denver Nuggets and Minnesota Timberwolves. Through Ticketmaster, the organization limited which ZIP codes people can be from to attend playoff games at Paycom Center, allowing only people with billing addresses in Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas, Missouri and Nebraska to buy tickets. During the Western Conference semis, both the Nuggets and Thunder won away games, but the Thunder trounced the Nuggets by 32 in Game 7 in OKC. In the conference finals, the lone Minnesota win in the series came in Game 3 at home.

The Pistons also tried geofencing in the 2025 playoffs, restricting purchases for Knicks fans during their first-round matchup. When New York supporters tried to purchase tickets for games at Little Caesars Arena, they were met with a message on Ticketmaster that read: “To better serve local fans looking to attend the playoff games at Little Caesars Arena, the Detroit Pistons are restricting tickets sales to customers located in Michigan and in certain parts of Ohio, Indiana, and Ontario, Canada, as determined by the Pistons and subject to change.”

Those who purchased tickets with a billing ZIP code outside of those areas would be issued a refund, the message continued.

Despite Detroit’s better efforts on and off the court, New York went on to win the series 4-2, with three of those wins coming on the road.

What happens if you’re a fan who happens to live in a different area and wants to travel for your team’s home game? We reached out on social media to find fans who had difficulty getting playoff tickets.

Kyle S., a Thunder fan who lives in Hawaii, has been rocking with the team since the days of Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and James Harden. Kyle tried to purchase tickets to Game 1 of the first round last year. But because of geofencing, he was blocked from making a purchase and had to use a third-party app.

Or, what if you’re not a fan of either team and just want to experience a playoff game?

Or there’s Jaylon F., an Atlanta resident who was visiting OKC for a work trip during the 2025 Western Conference finals. Jaylon wanted to catch a game as a neutral fan, but because of his billing address, he couldn’t purchase a ticket directly. Instead of using a third-party app, though, Jaylon asked his dad’s 65-year-old former college roommate, who lives in the Kansas City area, for help. That gentleman bought a single ticket and transferred it to Jaylon a couple of hours before the game.

Though they had to take an extra step or two to get tickets, fans, like the Knicks fans in Philly, have been able to get around the sales restriction. Especially with enterprising fans who are willing to buy and then resell tickets for a profit.

Because as we’ve seen, fans — like the athletes they try to follow across the country — can be competitive, too.