The Wait Is Over
Yesterday was a momentous day for me. After two and a half years of waiting I finally became a Lakers season ticket holder. I wish I could say that this was a lifetime dream come true because it might sound like a bigger deal. But in reality I’ve only been a Laker fan for about half of my life and never really thought about owning season tickets until four of five years ago.
Part of the reason I never thought about buying tickets is that I never really had the funds to buy them. My father wasn’t a basketball fan and I really wasn’t interest in basketball when I was younger, so he never took me to any games. When I started getting interested in the sport, I was still in high school and didn’t have my own money to buy tickets.
I started working part time jobs in college but I was living in the Boston area during most of the NBA season. I was able to go to the Boston Garden/Fleet Center a couple of times to watch the Lakers play, but that was about it. I went to grad school in the Northern California, so I was able to see the Lakers play (and lose) to the Golden State Warriors a few times as well, but I still never really thought about one day getting Laker season tickets.
I finally finished up school in May 2000 and returned to Los Angeles full time, right as the Lakers won a championship. At work I met a colleague who had season tickets and that’s when I first seriously started thinking about getting tickets. But I figured that since the Lakers were at a peak in their popularity, I wouldn’t be able to get tickets so I didn’t even bother looking into it. Instead I continued to follow them on television. I didn’t really mind given that the team was winning championships.
Then right before the 2003-04 season was about to tip off, my friend VCD (vayacondios) told me about an e-mail he had received. Sven, a season ticket holder, was looking for someone to buy half of his season tickets. This was after Karl Malone and Gary Payton had signed with the Lakers to try to take the championship trophy back from the San Antonio Spurs. Needless to say, I was very interested.
However, there was a catch. Sven wanted a premium, almost a 50% mark up. We would be buying $35 tickets for $50. Given how excited I was about Malone and Payton, I relented and we bought the tickets. It was definitely one of the best purchases I’ve ever made. The 2003-04 season was one hell of a ride -- from Kobe flying back and forth between Los Angeles and Colorado to attend court hearings to Malone getting injured and coming back late in the season to Phil and Shaq’s aborted contract negotiations.
We had made a deal with Sven that we would also split the playoff tickets so I was able to attend the close-out games against Houston, San Antonio, and Minnesota. I was also able to attend the second game of the finals against Detroit when Kobe hit a three pointer to send the game into overtime. Unfortunately it ended up being the last game I saw at Staples Center that season as the Pistons went on to win the series in five games.
I was hooked. After watching so many games in person I knew I had to find a way to become a season ticket holder. So I did some investigation and wrote to the Lakers office in El Segundo. I made a small deposit and was placed on the waiting list. I was number 1347. I did all this as the Lakers were being dismantled. Phil was gone, Shaq asked to be traded, and Karl was contemplating retirement. I was disappointed by these developments, but part of me was also thinking it would make going up on the waiting list a lot quicker.
As the 2004-05 season began, VCD e-mailed Sven to see if we could work out a similar deal. Unfortunately, Sven, who had been a student the previous year, had graduated and started a job and no longer was interested in selling his tickets. So VCD and I went to plan B. We tried to buy as many individual game tickets as possible. VCD was also able to get a bunch of tickets through some American Express program. So we ended up going to about 15 games that season. While it was nice to make it to that many games, I really missed having the same seat for 20 games or so.
This last season VCD found another season ticket holder that was looking to sell half of his tickets. Since Shaq was gone, there wasn’t going to be a premium this time around, even though Phil Jackson was coming back to coach the Lakers. I got a letter from the Lakers inquiring as to whether I wanted my deposit back or wanted to stay on the list after going from 1347 to 970 on the list. Obviously I decided to stay on the list.
This last season wasn’t as great a ride as the 2004 season, but it still had its moments. I was there when Kobe had 62 points against Dallas in three quarters and I was there for game 4 of the Phoenix series when Kobe hit a last second shot to send the game into overtime and another one to win the game in OT. In the middle of the season I contacted the Lakers office to give them my new address and was informed I was 420 on the waiting list. I was also invited to a town hall meeting the team holds for its season ticket holders. Needless to say I was excited and hopeful that I would be able to get season tickets this season.
About two weeks ago I got the notice. I was invited to Staples Center to select my seats. When I first saw the e-mail I wasn’t sure if I was actually getting the tickets. I called VCD to let him know and ask him what he thought the e-mail meant. After calling me an idiot, he pointed out that since the e-mail mentioned an invoice and payment it probably meant we were getting tickets. But he wasn’t completely sure either. When I mentioned that I wanted to write about getting the tickets, he asked me to hold off on it until we had actually gotten them as to not jinx anything.
So I went to Staples yesterday and got to choose my seats. As you might expect, the selection was limited. We got there 15 minutes early so we had to wait until it was our turn. We had expected that most of the available seats would be in the upper level behind one of the baskets. While we were waiting, we got to see that while most of the available seats were in the upper level, there were a few that were in the center sections. When we finally got attended to, we went up to look at some seats in section 334, which were $36 per game. VCD wanted get aisle seats but I saw a couple of seats that were closer to the center. I went to look at some seats in the $26 section and then went back to middle seats in section 334.
I sat in those seats for a while just looking down at the court and imagined watching a game. All the time, VCD was trying to convince me to get the aisle seats. He liked the aisle seats because you can quickly go to the bathroom and back during a timeout. As he was talking I notice a father and daughter walking towards those very same seats. I overheard them and it sounded like they were about to take them. Since I wanted the middle seats I just continued sitting there listening to VCD. I told him I preferred the center seats but he pleaded for us to take the aisle seats. But it was too late. The father and daughter had taken the aisle seats. VCD was annoyed and told me the other new season ticket holders were smarter than me. I just smiled knowing that I got my way. VCD was mad but he was also just about to become a Laker season ticket holder so he got over it. At least I think he did. As were leaving Staples after paying for the tickets, he started plotting how he could get rid of me and assume sole ownership of the tickets. So if I ever stop posting here, you’ll know what happened. But while I’m still around there's a new wait for me. The wait until the start of the NBA season.
Part of the reason I never thought about buying tickets is that I never really had the funds to buy them. My father wasn’t a basketball fan and I really wasn’t interest in basketball when I was younger, so he never took me to any games. When I started getting interested in the sport, I was still in high school and didn’t have my own money to buy tickets.
I started working part time jobs in college but I was living in the Boston area during most of the NBA season. I was able to go to the Boston Garden/Fleet Center a couple of times to watch the Lakers play, but that was about it. I went to grad school in the Northern California, so I was able to see the Lakers play (and lose) to the Golden State Warriors a few times as well, but I still never really thought about one day getting Laker season tickets.
I finally finished up school in May 2000 and returned to Los Angeles full time, right as the Lakers won a championship. At work I met a colleague who had season tickets and that’s when I first seriously started thinking about getting tickets. But I figured that since the Lakers were at a peak in their popularity, I wouldn’t be able to get tickets so I didn’t even bother looking into it. Instead I continued to follow them on television. I didn’t really mind given that the team was winning championships.
Then right before the 2003-04 season was about to tip off, my friend VCD (vayacondios) told me about an e-mail he had received. Sven, a season ticket holder, was looking for someone to buy half of his season tickets. This was after Karl Malone and Gary Payton had signed with the Lakers to try to take the championship trophy back from the San Antonio Spurs. Needless to say, I was very interested.
However, there was a catch. Sven wanted a premium, almost a 50% mark up. We would be buying $35 tickets for $50. Given how excited I was about Malone and Payton, I relented and we bought the tickets. It was definitely one of the best purchases I’ve ever made. The 2003-04 season was one hell of a ride -- from Kobe flying back and forth between Los Angeles and Colorado to attend court hearings to Malone getting injured and coming back late in the season to Phil and Shaq’s aborted contract negotiations.
We had made a deal with Sven that we would also split the playoff tickets so I was able to attend the close-out games against Houston, San Antonio, and Minnesota. I was also able to attend the second game of the finals against Detroit when Kobe hit a three pointer to send the game into overtime. Unfortunately it ended up being the last game I saw at Staples Center that season as the Pistons went on to win the series in five games.
I was hooked. After watching so many games in person I knew I had to find a way to become a season ticket holder. So I did some investigation and wrote to the Lakers office in El Segundo. I made a small deposit and was placed on the waiting list. I was number 1347. I did all this as the Lakers were being dismantled. Phil was gone, Shaq asked to be traded, and Karl was contemplating retirement. I was disappointed by these developments, but part of me was also thinking it would make going up on the waiting list a lot quicker.
As the 2004-05 season began, VCD e-mailed Sven to see if we could work out a similar deal. Unfortunately, Sven, who had been a student the previous year, had graduated and started a job and no longer was interested in selling his tickets. So VCD and I went to plan B. We tried to buy as many individual game tickets as possible. VCD was also able to get a bunch of tickets through some American Express program. So we ended up going to about 15 games that season. While it was nice to make it to that many games, I really missed having the same seat for 20 games or so.
This last season VCD found another season ticket holder that was looking to sell half of his tickets. Since Shaq was gone, there wasn’t going to be a premium this time around, even though Phil Jackson was coming back to coach the Lakers. I got a letter from the Lakers inquiring as to whether I wanted my deposit back or wanted to stay on the list after going from 1347 to 970 on the list. Obviously I decided to stay on the list.
This last season wasn’t as great a ride as the 2004 season, but it still had its moments. I was there when Kobe had 62 points against Dallas in three quarters and I was there for game 4 of the Phoenix series when Kobe hit a last second shot to send the game into overtime and another one to win the game in OT. In the middle of the season I contacted the Lakers office to give them my new address and was informed I was 420 on the waiting list. I was also invited to a town hall meeting the team holds for its season ticket holders. Needless to say I was excited and hopeful that I would be able to get season tickets this season.
About two weeks ago I got the notice. I was invited to Staples Center to select my seats. When I first saw the e-mail I wasn’t sure if I was actually getting the tickets. I called VCD to let him know and ask him what he thought the e-mail meant. After calling me an idiot, he pointed out that since the e-mail mentioned an invoice and payment it probably meant we were getting tickets. But he wasn’t completely sure either. When I mentioned that I wanted to write about getting the tickets, he asked me to hold off on it until we had actually gotten them as to not jinx anything.
So I went to Staples yesterday and got to choose my seats. As you might expect, the selection was limited. We got there 15 minutes early so we had to wait until it was our turn. We had expected that most of the available seats would be in the upper level behind one of the baskets. While we were waiting, we got to see that while most of the available seats were in the upper level, there were a few that were in the center sections. When we finally got attended to, we went up to look at some seats in section 334, which were $36 per game. VCD wanted get aisle seats but I saw a couple of seats that were closer to the center. I went to look at some seats in the $26 section and then went back to middle seats in section 334.
I sat in those seats for a while just looking down at the court and imagined watching a game. All the time, VCD was trying to convince me to get the aisle seats. He liked the aisle seats because you can quickly go to the bathroom and back during a timeout. As he was talking I notice a father and daughter walking towards those very same seats. I overheard them and it sounded like they were about to take them. Since I wanted the middle seats I just continued sitting there listening to VCD. I told him I preferred the center seats but he pleaded for us to take the aisle seats. But it was too late. The father and daughter had taken the aisle seats. VCD was annoyed and told me the other new season ticket holders were smarter than me. I just smiled knowing that I got my way. VCD was mad but he was also just about to become a Laker season ticket holder so he got over it. At least I think he did. As were leaving Staples after paying for the tickets, he started plotting how he could get rid of me and assume sole ownership of the tickets. So if I ever stop posting here, you’ll know what happened. But while I’m still around there's a new wait for me. The wait until the start of the NBA season.
posted by The Pocho at 1:45 PM
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