With the NBA Finals kicking off on May 31 and the league allowing teams to sell ad space on uniforms as of 2017, estimated to generate $100 million to $150 million in yearly revenue, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2018’s Best & Worst Cities for Basketball Fans.

To find the best cities for professional- and college-basketball fans, WalletHub compared more than 290 of the largest cities across 21 key metrics, ranging from the performance level of each city’s NBA and NCAA Division 1 basketball teams to ticket prices to stadium accessibility.

Best for Basketball Fans Worst for Basketball Fans
1 Los Angeles, CA 282 Fairfax, VA
2 Boston, MA 283 Jonesboro, AR
3 Oakland, CA 284 Lynchburg, VA
4 San Antonio, TX 285 Colorado Springs, CO
5 Salt Lake City, UT 286 Hackensack, NJ
6 Miami, FL 287 Riverside, CA
7 Oklahoma City, OK 288 Pocatello, ID
8 Chicago, IL 289 Clinton, SC
9 Cleveland, OH 290 Daytona Beach, FL
10 Philadelphia, PA 291 New Britain, CT

Best vs. Worst

  • New Orleans has the lowest average ticket price for an NBA game, $30.20, which is 3.2 times less expensive than in New York, the city with the highest at $97.77.
  • The Golden State Warriors have the highest performance level among NBA teams, 84.15 percent, which is 3.7 times better than that of the Philadelphia 76ers, the team with the lowest at 22.76 percent.
  • The Villanova Wildcats have the highest performance level among college basketball teams, 89.35 percent, which is 5.3 times better than that of the Central Connecticut Blue Devils, the team with the lowest at 16.87 percent.
  • Miami, Fla. has the highest fan engagement for NBA teams, 47.08, which is 34.1 times higher than in New York, the city with the lowest at 1.38.