Edward from Virginia, a BetMGM customer, has attended hundreds of sporting events over the years, but nothing like Game 2 of the NBA Finals, when he saw a team he’s a diehard fan of compete for a championship.
He won BetMGM’s NBA Finals Sweepstakes, which lasted from May 11-May 24, where each week players who opted into the contest received entries into the sweepstakes based on the following:
- $10 in cumulative wagers = 1 entry
- $20 in cumulative wagers = 2 entries
- $50 in cumulative wagers = 5 entries
- $100 in cumulative wagers = 10 entries
- $250 in cumulative wagers = 25 entries
The winner received $3,000 in withdrawable funds for travel and lodging expenses, and four tickets to Game 2 of the NBA Finals on June 5.
Edward learned on May 27 that he had won the sweepstakes and that his family would be going to the game. The news was met with both excitement and disbelief.
“My family was just going crazy as you might imagine,” he said. “Very exciting, shocking to say the least.”
Initially, they thought they might be headed to Oklahoma City as they had a 3-2 series lead against the Spurs in the Western Conference Finals, but they were hoping for San Antonio because of their family’s connection to the city and their longtime support of the Spurs.
And that is what they got after the Spurs won Games 6 and 7 to make it to the NBA Finals against the Knicks.
Once they arrived, the trip exceeded expectations.Â
Edward and his family stayed just a block from the Alamo, right in the heart of downtown San Antonio, where ESPN was broadcasting live ahead of the game.
“It was pretty awesome,” Edward said. “We were right there on the main drag where they did live ESPN shows all day Friday. My family loved it. San Antonio, downtown especially, is a really cool city.”
On the night of the game, they arrived early at the arena and were there shortly after the doors opened. The family spent time exploring the building, taking photos in front of the Spurs’ five championship trophies, and soaking in the pregame atmosphere.
“The atmosphere was insane,” Edward said. “There were a lot of Knicks fans, too.”
The game itself lived up to the occasion. Although the ending wasn’t what Spurs fans hoped for, a Knicks 105-104 win, Edward said the experience was everything a basketball fan could want from an NBA Finals game.
“Outside of the ending, if you’re a Spurs fan, it couldn’t have been a better game,” he said. “It’s the type of game you just say, ‘I don’t think there’s any chance I can ever get a one-point game in the NBA finals.’”
Looking back on winning the opportunity to attend the game, Edward called the experience “fantastic.”
“It’s living proof that somebody always wins, and [BetMGM] always comes through,” he said.
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