The Nets credited their perfect home playoff record coming into Saturday’s Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals to the lift their fans had given them. And the Nets found a way to give back, thanking the heartiest of those fans with discounts deeper than a Joe Harris 3-pointer.
Hundreds of fans lined up early in the morning Saturday at Barclays Center to get their hands on the first 97 ticket vouchers for Game 7 against the Bucks. Those vouchers were made available by the Nets at noon as part of a promotion with the radio station Hot 97. The fans ended up paying just $9.71, a fraction of the prices at resale sites, which ranged from the hundreds to the thousands.
After getting the vouchers, the fans returned to Barclays Center when the doors opened for Game 7 to redeem them for tickets. But like a pot luck or lottery, they had no idea where the seats were going to be — only that they were going to get a pre-Father’s Day gift and possibly once-in-a-lifetime experience for a bargain.
The line stretched down Flatbush Avenue, with some fans waiting as long as six hours to get their vouchers for Saturday’s elimination game in the Eastern Conference semifinals.
Chimere Mayo and Rels Douglas arrived at 6:30 a.m. to get tickets for Douglas.
“First, it’s Father’s Day, and he loves the Nets,” Mayo said.
When asked why they had camped out since 6:30 a.m., she answered “It’s Game 7! It’s the Nets, baby. It’s the Nets.”
Douglas added “It’s Father’s Day. It’s Brooklyn, baby.”
Nets All-Star Kyrie Irving, who remembers going to the franchise’s playoff games as a kid in New Jersey, recalled the impact they had on an impressionable kid. Maybe the next Irving will be at one of these playoff games.The Nets’ parent company, BSE Global, tried to give as many access as possible.
“There’s nothing like experiencing a Nets game live,” BSE Global Chief Commercial Officer Michael Wandell said. “Our promotion with Hot 97 is designed to ensure that all New Yorkers have access to our games.
“We continue to offer tickets at various price points so everyone has a chance to participate in this incredible season. The crowd has never been louder in Brooklyn and we are eternally grateful to all of our fans who bring that magical energy to Barclays Center.”