Ticket sales up for 76ers

This story has been corrected. The version of this story that appeared in the Inquirer misspelled the last name of 76ers minority owner Adam Aron.

If the 76ers don't sell one more season-ticket package between now and Sept. 28 - the day that single-game tickets go on sale - they still will have sold more tickets for the 2012-13 season than they did last season, according to the team's ownership group.

"It's been an incredible offseason for us, right on the heels of a great season," said minority owner Adam Aron, the team's chief executive officer.

Aron said the Sixers have more than doubled the sales of full season-ticket packages from 3,300 last season to 7,000. He said sales of 10-game ticket packages have more than quadrupled for the Sixers, who begin the regular season on Oct. 31 with a home game against the Denver Nuggets.

This marks the second season in a row that the Sixers, who have drastically altered their roster, expect to see significant gains in attendance. Last season, reduced from 82 games to 66 after a lockout, the Sixers saw average attendance at the Wells Fargo Center jump from 14,751 (25th in the NBA in the 2010-11 season) to 17,502 (14th).

The most significant change to the team is at center. The Sixers traded for Andrew Bynum, a two-time NBA champion with the Los Angeles Lakers, a two-time all-star, and a player who may be regarded as the best center in the Eastern Conference.

However, Aron said, the increase in ticket sales is not solely because of the addition of Bynum, whom Aron credited for "about a 5 percent bump" in sales.

"We have had healthy sales since the announcement of the trade," Aron said of the four-team, 12-player swap on Aug. 12 that landed Bynum. "The vast majority of what we have sold is on the strength of everything we've done."

The Sixers upset top-seeded Chicago in the first round of the playoffs last season, then came within one game of reaching the Eastern Conference finals for the first time since 2001.

The Sixers, who have reported a 92 percent renewal rate on season tickets, did not the change majority of their ticket prices. They have aggressively marketed tickets by mail and phone and have offered enticements for season-ticket holders such as a private entrance to the Wells Fargo Center.

"It's an experience that we know they will love," Aron said. "We want to continue to improve the experience for our patrons, both on and off the court."