Upcoming NBA Finals dates
Dates and live ticket listings appear here as soon as they are on sale. The guide below covers what to know before you buy.
Finals seating, decided
At an NBA Finals game, the seat that pays off most is in the lower bowl along a sideline, roughly rows 8 to 20. You sit above the benches and scorer's table, close enough to feel the game and high enough to see it. The Finals are the league's championship: the Eastern and Western Conference champions play a best-of-seven series each June, with every game in one of the two teams' home arenas. There is no neutral host, so the city depends on who wins the conference finals.
- Best overall: 100-level sideline, mid rows.
- Best full-court read: upper-level sideline.
- Closest, but flat: courtside.
- Cheapest in the lower bowl: behind the baskets, with trade-offs.
Courtside to upper deck: four tiers for a title game
NBA arenas share a common plan, so the trade-offs travel with the series.
Courtside
Floor seats along the sidelines put you inside the broadcast picture. The angle is low, though, and plays developing at the far end are hard to follow from eye level.
Lower-bowl sideline
The 100-level sections on the long sides give the most complete view in most buildings. Mid-section rows clear the benches without losing the sense of being close.
Lower-bowl baseline
Behind the baskets you see one end clearly and the other end compressed. The basket stanchion (the padded support for the hoop) can block the lowest rows. These usually cost less than sideline seats in the same level.
Upper level
Farther away, but spacing and defense are easy to read, and the home crowd up top is often the loudest part of the building.
A visiting fan stands out at the Finals. Crowds are mostly good-natured, but a potential clincher brings a one-sided building; neutral colors draw less attention.
Openers, clinchers and Game 7
The game you pick drives demand more than the section does.
- Game 1: the novelty of the opener and the first look at the matchup.
- A possible clincher at home: the chance to see the trophy presented on the home floor, and the strongest demand of a normal series. If you hold one, stay after the buzzer.
- Game 7: usually the hardest ticket of the NBA season, when it happens.
- Long droughts and big markets: the Knicks' 2026 title was their first since 1973, the kind of wait that fills an arena with fans who have been waiting decades.
Demand also moves after every game. A home Game 6 sells very differently when the home team trails 3–2 than when it leads 3–2.
Certain games and if-necessary games
The Finals use a 2-2-1-1-1 home schedule. The league switched to 2-3-2 in 1985 to cut cross-country travel and returned to 2-2-1-1-1 in 2014. The team with the better regular-season record hosts Games 1, 2, 5 and 7; the other finalist hosts Games 3, 4 and 6.
- Always played: Games 1 through 4.
- Only if needed: Games 5, 6 and 7, which happen only while neither team has four wins.
- Recent examples: the 2024 Finals were a 4–0 sweep and the 2026 Finals ended in five, so later-game tickets in those years were never used.
Read the refund terms for an unplayed game before you buy a conditional date.
How Finals seats get released
The matchup is not known until the conference finals end, so the market forms fast. Each host team controls its own seats and typically offers them to season-ticket members first, which leaves little for a general sale. Most fans buy resale (tickets listed by their original buyers), where prices sit above or below face value depending on demand. Reserved Seat orders are covered by a 100% guarantee, which matters on a short-notice purchase like this one.
Inside a Finals night
Every Finals game is a national broadcast. ABC has carried the Finals exclusively since 2003, and tip times follow that schedule rather than the home team's usual one, so confirm the start time once the league posts it. Arrive early: a sold-out arena with full security screening takes longer to enter than a regular-season game.
Inside, nearly every possession draws a reaction, and the crowd rarely sits during a close fourth quarter. Each arena, not the league, sets its own bag, entry and mobile-ticket rules, and they change between seasons. Check the host arena's current policy before you go.
Champions from 1947 to the Knicks
The series began in 1947 as the BAA Finals, before the Basketball Association of America merged with the National Basketball League to form the NBA. It was called the NBA World Championship Series from 1950 to 1985 and has been the NBA Finals since 1986. The champion receives the Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy, which replaced the Walter A. Brown Trophy in the 1976–77 season, and the top player receives the Bill Russell NBA Finals MVP Award, first given in 1969.
- 1947: the Philadelphia Warriors beat the Chicago Stags for the first title.
- Early dynasties: the Minneapolis Lakers won five of the first ten titles; the Boston Celtics won 11 in 13 seasons from 1957 to 1969, eight of them in a row from 1959 to 1966.
- 1991 to 1998: Michael Jordan's Chicago Bulls won six titles in six trips.
- Record holders: the Celtics have 18 titles, the latest against Dallas in 2024; the Lakers have 17.
- 2025: the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Indiana Pacers in seven.
- 2026: the New York Knicks beat the San Antonio Spurs in five, with Jalen Brunson named Finals MVP. Their 29-point comeback in Game 4 was the largest in Finals history, and the title made eight different champions in eight seasons, an NBA record.
Schedules and standings are on the NBA's website.
Frequently asked questions
What are the best seats at an NBA Finals game?
Lower-bowl sideline seats, about rows 8 to 20, balance closeness with a full view of the floor. Upper-level sideline seats are the value pick for reading the whole court.
Is courtside worth it at the Finals?
It is the closest seat in the building, but the low angle makes far-end plays harder to follow. Fans who want to see the game develop usually prefer mid-row sideline seats.
Which team hosts Game 1 of the NBA Finals?
The finalist with the better regular-season record. It also hosts Games 2, 5 and 7, while the other team hosts Games 3, 4 and 6.
What happens if I buy a Game 6 ticket and the series ends in five?
The game is not played. How an unplayed game is handled depends on the seller's terms, so check them before you buy a conditional date.
Which network broadcasts the NBA Finals?
ABC, which has carried the Finals exclusively since 2003. Tip-off times are set around that broadcast.
Who won the 2026 NBA Finals?
The New York Knicks, who beat the San Antonio Spurs in five games for their first title since 1973. Jalen Brunson was Finals MVP.