Chris Granger, the NBA's executive vice president for team marketing and business operations, said fan-friendly initiatives helped teams play to 99.2% of capacity over the first 32 games, up from 90.3% for the full 2010-11 season.

"We're very focused on our relationship with our fans and our suite holders and our corporate partners, and have been throughout this work stoppage," Granger said in a phone conversation. "We clearly appreciate their patience. We clearly understand the stresses we put on them and their businesses.

"We're always worried about our relationship with them. But I think it speaks to our teams and their ability to maintain good relationships with our fans even during a difficult time. Hopefully, that's part of the reason things seem to be going pretty well so far."