Ticket prices for NBA Finals hit $60K — and Raptors fans aren't amused

It might be fair to say that Canadian basketball fans want to be present when the Toronto Raptors play in their first NBA Finals. And the ideal spot would probably be in the courtside area where Drake sits. 

But it will take more than luck to get a seat inside Scotiabank Arena on Thursday to watch the Raptors play the reigning NBA champion Golden State Warriors in Game 1.

It will also take a lot of cold hard cash.

The official ticketing partner of the NBA — Ticketmaster — began selling tickets at 6 p.m. ET on Monday. There were more than 2,000 people in an online queue waiting to buy tickets when they went on sale. Thirty minutes after tickets went on sale, they had sold out.

Buyers must get to the front of the queue to see the prices.

But early on Monday, CBC News canvassed some popular ticket reselling websites to see what prices were like for Thursday's game.

While standard NBA playoff tickets usually cost between $100 and $1,200, these prices have seen huge increases for the finals. 

StubHub was selling tickets under three categories: Lowest Price, Best Value, and Best Seats.

Its lowest-priced tickets — $883.19 — were sold out at the time of the canvass.

StubHub's Best Value tickets ranged from $8,832 each for two tickets for Row B Courtside West, to $10,889 each for two tickets for Row B Courtside North. 

Under its Best Seats category, a cool $60,487 could fetch you two tickets for Courtside East, Row A. Single tickets in that section were not available.

SeatGeek's lowest published price were $1,113 each for one to eight tickets in Section 312 – Row 17, an upper deck corner.

Their highest published price was two tickets in Section 108 – Row 1 at a whopping $13,174 each.

The site also offered packages for $1,478, $2,957 each and $4,300 each. Packages include a minimum of two tickets and a maximum of eight.

Its second highest published price was $11,696 each for two tickets to be seated at Courtside North – Row B.

Fans not amused 

Raptors fans like Darren Bondy, who said he has been waiting his whole life for this team to make the finals, were not amused by the high ticket prices.

"Now I'd have to sell my house to afford tickets," Bondy said on Twitter.

For Shirley Mak, it's simply "heartbreaking."

Here's a glimpse at how fans have been reacting to the ticket prices.

On the bright side, if you are a diehard Raptors fan who simply cannot get into the arena, there is always Jurassic Park — the area outside the Scotiabank Arena with a big screen, where fans have been gathering throughout the playoffs. But bear in mind, you will need to show up early, and be prepared to brave the elements.