updated 4:55 p.m. ET Nov. 6, 2007

CHICAGO - Lakers fans will pay big bucks for tickets this season, whether Kobe Bryant remains in Los Angeles or not.

The average price of a Lakers season ticket is $89.24, highest in the NBA, according to Team Marketing Report’s survey released Tuesday. That was an increase of 4.5 percent from last season.

Lakers owner Jerry Buss said last month the team would look to trade Bryant, who criticized management and asked to be dealt last spring. But fans likely would prefer to have the two-time NBA scoring champion in town, since a family of four shells out an average of $453.95 a night to see the Lakers, also tops in the league, according to the survey’s Fan Cost Index.

The Fan Cost Index is based on four average-price tickets, two small draft beers, four small soft drinks, four regular-size hot dogs, parking for one car, two game programs and two least-expensive, adult-size adjustable caps. The league average is $281.90.

The average NBA ticket price climbed 3.6 percent, an increase of about two dollars, to $48.83.

The New York Knicks charge an average of $70.51 to watch a team that hasn’t made the playoffs since 2004. Boston’s average ticket rose slightly to $65.43, and Chicago ($63) is fourth after a 15.3 percent increase.

The Hornets, in their first season back in New Orleans, charge a league-low $24.58.

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