Adam McCann, Financial Writer

May 22, 2019

Americans love basketball. How much? Let’s put it this way: It has a fanbase that exceeds the population of Spain. And on the business side of things, it’s growing. Today, the average NBA franchise is worth $1.9 billion (an increase of 13% from 2018) and draws additional revenues from TV partnerships, merchandise sales and, as of 2017, advertising on NBA team uniforms.

So it’s safe to say — considering the tens of millions of people who regularly watch basketball and the billions of dollars we shell out in its name — that we’re a little more than crazed about the sport.

But what defines a good basketball city? Top-performing teams, revenues and traditions are all part of the equation, of course, but there’s simply no game without the fans. The city itself should encourage attendance and engagement, too. That means, for instance, making stadiums accessible or keeping ticket-costs affordable — at least for a time.

With basketball fans in mind, WalletHub crunched the numbers to find the best spots in America to love on your favorite sport. We compared more than 290 of the largest cities based on 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. Read on to find the full list of winners, a ranking by city size, commentary from a panel of experts and an explanation of how we ranked the cities.

Main Findings

Best Cities for Basketball Fans





Ranking by City Size

Rank

(1 = Best) Large City

(Score) Rank

(1 = Best) Midsize City

(Score) Rank

(1 = Best) Small City

(Score) 1 Boston, MA

(62.37) 1 Salt Lake City, UT

(47.40) 1 Lawrence, KS

(30.14) 2 Los Angeles, CA

(61.81) 2 Orlando, FL

(37.64) 2 East Lansing, MI

(28.82) 3 Oakland, CA

(51.37) 3 Durham, NC

(30.82) 3 Storrs, CT

(27.56) 4 San Antonio, TX

(48.07) 4 Ann Arbor, MI

(22.85) 4 Chapel Hill, NC

(27.30) 5 Miami, FL

(45.55) 5 Cincinnati, OH

(21.44) 5 Fayette, MS

(25.69) 6 Oklahoma City, OK

(45.31) 6 South Bend, IN

(20.64) 6 Loretto, PA

(25.43) 7 Philadelphia, PA

(44.89) 7 Norman, OK

(20.42) 7 Morgantown, WV

(24.07) 8 Chicago, IL

(43.45) 8 Provo, UT

(19.84) 8 Kingston, RI

(24.00) 9 Houston, TX

(42.12) 9 Syracuse, NY

(18.03) 9 College Park, MD

(23.81) 10 Cleveland, OH

(41.93) 10 Columbia, SC

(17.69) 10 Bloomington, IN

(22.59) 11 Dallas, TX

(39.91) 11 Eugene, OR

(17.68) 11 West Point, NY

(22.40) 12 Washington, DC

(39.74) 12 Providence, RI

(17.13) 12 Charlottesville, VA

(21.72) 13 New York, NY

(39.43) 13 College Station, TX

(16.77) 13 Fayetteville, AR

(20.89) 14 Portland, OR

(39.41) 14 Dayton, OH

(16.67) 14 Lewiston, NY

(20.67) 15 New Orleans, LA

(39.25) 15 Murfreesboro, TN

(16.55) 15 Buies Creek, NC

(20.59) 16 Indianapolis, IN

(37.15) 16 Norfolk, VA

(16.39) 16 Ames, IA

(19.95) 17 Sacramento, CA

(37.11) 17 Lafayette, LA

(16.34) 17 West Lafayette, IN

(19.80) 18 Atlanta, GA

(36.34) 18 Akron, OH

(16.27) 18 Stillwater, OK

(19.55) 19 Milwaukee, WI

(36.11) 19 Gainesville, FL

(16.20) 19 Itta Bena, MS

(19.16) 20 Detroit, MI

(34.75) 20 Waco, TX

(15.95) 20 Emmitsburg, MD

(18.73) 21 Memphis, TN

(33.41) 21 Baton Rouge, LA

(15.93) 21 Lewisburg, PA

(18.60) 22 Minneapolis, MN

(32.88) 22 Toledo, OH

(15.81) 22 Murray, KY

(18.58) 23 Denver, CO

(32.35) 23 Greensboro, NC

(15.75) 23 Princeton, NJ

(18.46) 24 Charlotte, NC

(29.28) 24 Savannah, GA

(15.72) 24 Spartanburg, SC

(18.36) 25 Phoenix, AZ

(28.21) 25 New Haven, CT

(15.63) 25 Highland Heights, KY

(18.22) 26 Lexington, KY

(26.75) 26 Lincoln, NE

(15.62) 26 Olean, NY

(18.21) 27 Nashville, TN

(19.09) 27 Reno, NV

(15.58) 27 Orangeburg, SC

(18.18) 28 Louisville, KY

(18.00) 28 Buffalo, NY

(15.57) 28 Ogden, UT

(17.94) 29 Long Beach, CA

(17.73) 29 Boulder, CO

(15.45) 29 Troy, AL

(17.92) 30 Tulsa, OK

(17.64) 30 Tallahassee, FL

(15.44) 30 Clemson, SC

(17.65) 31 Baltimore, MD

(17.64) 31 Hampton, VA

(15.36) 31 Iowa City, IA

(17.64) 32 Omaha, NE

(17.37) 32 Irvine, CA

(15.32) 32 Cullowhee, NC

(17.54) 33 San Francisco, CA

(16.62) 33 Abilene, TX

(15.24) 33 Williamsburg, VA

(17.49) 34 Seattle, WA

(16.38) 34 Jackson, MS

(15.23) 34 Athens, OH

(17.49) 35 Tucson, AZ

(16.31) 35 Tempe, AZ

(15.22) 35 Nacogdoches, TX

(17.32) 36 Pittsburgh, PA

(16.04) 36 Newark, NJ

(15.22) 36 Hamilton, NY

(17.21) 37 Columbus, OH

(16.01) 37 High Point, NC

(15.18) 37 Champaign, IL

(17.19) 38 Arlington, TX

(15.85) 38 Charleston, SC

(15.16) 38 Carbondale, IL

(17.08) 39 Jacksonville, FL

(15.49) 39 Fargo, ND

(15.09) 39 Laramie, WY

(17.05) 40 San Diego, CA

(15.28) 40 Boise, ID

(15.07) 40 Durham, NH

(17.03) 41 Corpus Christi, TX

(15.07) 41 Spokane, WA

(14.96) 41 Stanford, CA

(16.99) 42 Bakersfield, CA

(14.81) 42 Madison, WI

(14.90) 42 Brookings, SD

(16.81) 43 Austin, TX

(14.71) 43 Chattanooga, TN

(14.85) 43 Johnson City, TN

(16.78) 44 Fresno, CA

(14.36) 44 Macon, GA

(14.73) 44 Cheney, WA

(16.77) 45 Raleigh, NC

(14.21) 45 Lowell, MA

(14.42) 45 Princess Anne, MD

(16.72) 46 Las Vegas, NV

(13.97) 46 Clarksville, TN

(14.35) 46 Albany, NY

(16.72) 47 El Paso, TX

(13.91) 47 Lubbock, TX

(14.34) 47 Huntsville, TX

(16.69) 48 Wichita, KS

(13.48) 48 Fort Wayne, IN

(14.28) 48 Kent, OH

(16.51) 49 Kansas City, MO

(13.43) 49 Beaumont, TX

(13.91) 49 Grambling, LA

(16.47) 50 Colorado Springs, CO

(13.41) 50 North Charleston, SC

(13.73) 50 Boiling Springs, NC

(16.46) 51 St. Louis, MO

(13.26) 51 Worcester, MA

(13.69) 51 Moraga, CA

(16.42) 52 Riverside, CA

(13.20) 52 Birmingham, AL

(13.69) 52 Normal, IL

(16.36) 53 Albuquerque, NM

(13.18) 53 Little Rock, AR

(13.57) 53 Rock Hill, SC

(16.35) 54 Honolulu, HI

(12.39) 54 Mobile, AL

(13.52) 54 Cedar Falls, IA

(16.35) 55 Stockton, CA

(12.32) 55 Hartford, CT

(13.33) 55 Radford, VA

(16.31) 56 Fort Worth, TX

(11.81) 56 Cambridge, MA

(13.32) 56 Thibodaux, LA

(16.25) 57 San Jose, CA

(11.76) 57 Fort Collins, CO

(13.30) 57 Moscow, ID

(16.23) 58 Tampa, FL

(11.66) 58 Denton, TX

(13.29) 58 Morehead, KY

(16.19) 59 Evansville, IN

(13.29) 59 Ypsilanti, MI

(16.19) 60 Las Cruces, NM

(13.28) 60 Oxford, MS

(16.18) 61 Springfield, MO

(13.23) 61 Ruston, LA

(16.17) 62 Greeley, CO

(13.22) 62 Pullman, WA

(16.16) 63 Santa Clara, CA

(13.17) 63 Prairie View, TX

(16.15) 64 Athens, GA

(13.15) 64 Long Branch, NJ

(16.15) 65 Green Bay, WI

(13.10) 65 Mount Pleasant, MI

(16.13) 66 Winston-Salem, NC

(13.06) 66 Hammond, LA

(15.92) 67 Peoria, IL

(13.06) 67 Stony Brook, NY

(15.78) 68 Columbia, MO

(12.88) 68 Lexington, VA

(15.73) 69 Wilmington, NC

(12.69) 69 Annapolis, MD

(15.65) 70 Fullerton, CA

(12.43) 70 Bowling Green, KY

(15.64) 71 Richmond, VA

(12.18) 71 Fairfield, CT

(15.58) 72 Berkeley, CA

(11.79) 72 Muncie, IN

(15.58) 73 Des Moines, IA

(11.22) 73 State College, PA

(15.57) 74 Huntsville, AL

(10.22) 74 Statesboro, GA

(15.52) 75 Knoxville, TN

(9.97) 75 Conway, SC

(15.50) 76 Jersey City, NJ

(8.24) 76 Valparaiso, IN

(15.45) 77 Montgomery, AL

(7.46) 77 New Rochelle, NY

(15.44) 78 Jacksonville, AL

(15.44) 79 Lynchburg, VA

(15.40) 80 Grand Forks, ND

(15.34) 81 Boone, NC

(15.32) 82 Terre Haute, IN

(15.24) 83 Easton, PA

(15.23) 84 Amherst, MA

(15.22) 85 DeKalb, IL

(15.22) 86 Elon, NC

(15.16) 87 Huntington, WV

(15.10) 88 Towson, MD

(15.09) 89 Greenville, SC

(15.08) 90 Trenton, NJ

(15.05) 91 Davis, CA

(15.02) 92 San Marcos, TX

(14.98) 93 Martin, TN

(14.87) 94 Asheville, NC

(14.85) 95 Charleston, IL

(14.79) 96 Corvallis, OR

(14.78) 97 Richmond, KY

(14.59) 98 Harrisonburg, VA

(14.56) 99 Kalamazoo, MI

(14.52) 100 Ithaca, NY

(14.47) 101 Orem, UT

(14.46) 102 Hanover, NH

(14.37) 103 Natchitoches, LA

(14.30) 104 Santa Barbara, CA

(14.29) 105 Rochester Hills, MI

(14.27) 106 Cape Girardeau, MO

(14.22) 107 Bozeman, MT

(14.21) 108 Monroe, LA

(14.16) 109 Fort Myers, FL

(14.15) 110 Hempstead, NY

(14.09) 111 Pine Bluff, AR

(14.07) 112 Blacksburg, VA

(14.07) 113 Davidson, NC

(14.05) 114 Macomb, IL

(14.00) 115 San Luis Obispo, CA

(13.99) 116 Fairfax, VA

(13.91) 117 Oxford, OH

(13.63) 118 Farmville, VA

(13.58) 119 Manhattan, KS

(13.52) 120 Clinton, SC

(13.51) 121 Vermillion, SD

(13.40) 122 Auburn, AL

(13.36) 123 Lake Charles, LA

(13.36) 124 Jonesboro, AR

(13.28) 125 Bowling Green, OH

(13.26) 126 Tuscaloosa, AL

(13.25) 127 Youngstown, OH

(13.23) 128 Orono, ME

(13.22) 129 Edwardsville, IL

(13.20) 130 DeLand, FL

(13.05) 131 Newark, DE

(12.94) 132 Evanston, IL

(12.91) 133 Logan, UT

(12.91) 134 Hattiesburg, MS

(12.79) 135 Starkville, MS

(12.68) 136 Kennesaw, GA

(12.65) 137 Binghamton, NY

(12.62) 138 Greenville, NC

(12.48) 139 Florence, AL

(12.41) 140 Conway, AR

(12.17) 141 Cedar City, UT

(12.06) 142 Boca Raton, FL

(11.72) 143 Edinburg, TX

(11.65) 144 Malibu, CA

(11.61) 145 Dover, DE

(11.55) 146 Flagstaff, AZ

(11.45) 147 Poughkeepsie, NY

(11.43) 148 Burlington, VT

(10.79) 149 New Brunswick, NJ

(10.72) 150 Missoula, MT

(10.12) 151 Bethlehem, PA

(9.68) 152 Cookeville, TN

(9.16) 153 Hackensack, NJ

(7.67) 154 Daytona Beach, FL

(6.76) 155 Pocatello, ID

(6.55) 156 New Britain, CT

(6.02)

Ask the Experts

Showing team spirit can get pretty expensive. For insight on enjoying hoops on a budget and other basketball-related matters, we asked a panel of experts to share their thoughts on the following key questions:

Do you think the NBA or the NFL has a better chance of successfully adding a European franchise? What, in your mind, makes a good basketball fan? What do you think is the best city for basketball fans and why? Do you have any tips for how basketball fans can enjoy the sport without breaking the bank?

Methodology

To determine the best and worst cities for professional- and college-basketball fans, WalletHub compared 291 of the most populated cities across two divisional categories, “NBA” and “NCAA.”

We evaluated those categories using 21 relevant metrics, which are listed below with their corresponding weights. Each metric was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the most favorable conditions for basketball fandom.

We then determined each city’s weighted average across all metrics to calculate its overall score and used the resulting scores to rank-order our sample.

For our sample, we chose cities with at least one college basketball or NBA team. We also ranked the cities based on population size, using the following groupings:

Large Cities: More than 300,000 people

More than 300,000 people Midsize Cities: 100,000 to 300,000 people

100,000 to 300,000 people Small Cities: Fewer than 100,000 people

NBA – Total Points = 70

Number of NBA Team(s): Full Weight (~8.24 Points)

Performance Level of NBA Team(s): Full Weight (~8.24 Points)

Note: This metric was calculated by dividing “Number of Wins” by “Total Games Played” and using the past three seasons’ averages.

Number of NBA Championships Wins: Full Weight (~8.24 Points)

Number of NBA Division Championship Wins: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)

Number of Hall of Fame Head Coaches: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)

Franchise Value (Team Estimated Value in $Billion): Half Weight (~4.12 Points)

Average Ticket Price for NBA Game: Full Weight (~8.24 Points)

NBA Fan Engagement: Full Weight (~8.24 Points)

Note: This metric was calculated by adding “Number of Twitter Followers” and “Number of Facebook ‘Likes’ per Capita.”

Number of Coaches in Past 10 Seasons: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)

Note: “Past 10 Seasons” include seasons 2009–2010 to 2018–2019.

NBA Stadium Capacity: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)

Note: This metric was calculated by dividing “Stadium Capacity” by “City Population.”

NBA Attendance: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)

Note: This metric was calculated by dividing “Average Home-Fan Attendance” by “Stadium Capacity” for NBA teams only.

NBA Popularity Ranking: Half Weight (~4.12 Points)

NCAA Basketball – Total Points = 30

Number of College Basketball (Division 1) Team(s): Full Weight (~4.29 Points)

Performance Level of College Basketball (Division 1) Team(s): Full Weight (~4.29 Points)

Note: This metric was calculated by dividing “Number of Wins” by “Total Games Played” and using the past three seasons’ averages.

Number of College Basketball (Division 1) Championship Wins: Full Weight (~4.29 Points)

Number of College Basketball (Division 1) Conference Regular Season Championship Wins: Half Weight (~2.14 Points)

Number of Hall of Fame Head Coaches: Half Weight (~2.14 Points)

Minimum Season Ticket Price for College Basketball (Division 1) Games: Full Weight (~4.29 Points)

College-Basketball Fan Engagement: Full Weight (~4.29 Points)

Note: This metric was calculated by adding “Number of Twitter Followers” and “Number of Facebook ‘Likes’ per Capita.”

Number of Coaches in Past 10 Seasons: Half Weight (~2.14 Points)

Note: “Past 10 Seasons” include seasons 2009–2010 to 2018–2019.

College-Basketball Stadium Capacity: Half Weight (~2.14 Points)

Note: This metric was calculated by dividing “Stadium Capacity” by “City Population.”



Videos for News Use:

Sources: Data used to create this ranking were collected from the U.S. Census Bureau, Team Marketing Report, ESPN, NBA, NCAA.org, Forbes, Ranker.com, Sports Reference and each team’s website.

Image: Oleksii Sidorov / Shutterstock.com

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