FAN-TASY LAND SOUTHLAND FEVERISH WITH LAKERMANIA.

Byline: Joseph Giordono Staff Writer

Forget about Dodger Blue or dollar green. The most popular colors in town these days are purple and gold.

With the Los Angeles Lakers having a chance to become the first National Basketball Association team to roar through the playoffs undefeated, Tinseltown has once again become the realm of Shaq and Kobe.

Lakers memorabilia - from flags to clocks and jerseys - are flying off store shelves. And scalpers' prices for tickets to Wednesday's first game against the Philadelphia 76ers, who advanced to the NBA Finals by thrashing the Milwaukee Bucks 108-91 Sunday in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals, could soar as high as $5,000 for a pair of front-row seats.

And all through the region, the Lakers are the buzz.

``It's starting to feel like Showtime again,'' said Van Nuys construction worker and Lakers fan Gene Grassley, who recalls the good ol' days when Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul Jabbar made the Lakers the team of the 1980s.

``I'll be right here at the bar to watch every game, but it sure would be nice to see it in person. I don't have that kind of cash, though.''

Tickets for the sold-out finals are scarcer than clean-air days in the heat of summer, and the handful available from scalpers or brokers come at a high price.

A pair of front row tickets for Wednesday's game were going for $3,500 on eBay, the Internet auction site. And some seats are expected to hit $5,000 a pair, according to several ticket agencies.

Although the face value of tickets range from $10 to $140, Ticketmaster, the nation's dominant ticket broker, lists them at $18 to $1,450.

But it's not just the game that people are paying to see.

``You could witness the first undefeated team ever in the NBA playoffs,'' reads the eBay ad for the $3,500 front row seats. ``Magic Johnson's wife sits directly behind you, and Magic Johnson and Dyan Cannon sit on the floor in front of you (Mike Tyson sat in Magic's seat last game).''

Another eBay auction offering a pair of ``VIP'' tickets in the lower bowl had a winning bid of $2,025.

``Everybody who is anybody will be at this NBA Finals Playoff game,'' the seller wrote. ``Here is a chance to get a good look at one of your favorite actors.''

Rather make a car down payment with your money than buy premium Lakers tickets? Single seats in the upper mezzanine at Staples Center were going for anywhere from $300 to $500 by the end of the week.

Of course, if you can't afford the ticket markup, you can follow the lead of at least one die-hard fan.

Accepting the challenge of local hip-hop radio station Power 106 FM, a man from Montebello had the words ``I slept with Shaq,'' tattooed on his forehead to win Western Conference Finals tickets.

Lakers hype has been a boon for business owners as well.

``This is great. It's just like Super Bowl week around here,'' said Scott Damschroder, owner of Scorecard sports collectibles in Studio City where eight customers lined up outside the door on a recent weekday morning, waiting for the store to open.

Last week, his customers included a man buying a Lakers baby jumper for his child and another patron who bought a license plate frame for his Lakers-gold Porsche.

A third customer - whose hair bore a striking resemblance to the mop on Lakers forward Rick Fox's head - was searching for Fox's number 17 jersey.

Another popular item has been the car flags that increasingly adorn automobile windows around the Southland.

``Before last year's Lakers, there hadn't been many winners in L.A. for a while,'' Damschroder said. ``But everyone loves a winner and this is a town that relates to stars. It's fun, and people want to be a part of it.''

But the Lakers' postseason dominance is hurting the bottom line for others with a financial stake.

Sports industry analysts estimate that each game of a typical seven-game basketball playoff series brings in about $5 million to $10 million in ad revenue.

According to analysts at the Los Angeles-based Sports Business Group, each series sweep by the Lakers ends up costing the NBA and its broadcast partners about $20 million in ad revenue.

The average Lakers fan, however, does not seem to mind seeing the team breeze through playoff opponents.

``The only thing that I'm worried about is the fact that they will probably win this thing on the road,'' said Lakers fan David McNown, referring to the NBA Finals schedule that has Games 3, 4 and 5 in the Eastern Conference champions arena.

``It won't be as much fun as if they would win it at home,'' the Woodland Hills resident said. ``But I'm sure the police would have a little easier time of it.''

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3 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) Paul Russon entices motorists with Lakers paraphernalia at an intersection in Hollywood where his son, Eddy, has a memorabilia stand.

(2 -- 3 -- color) Woodland Hills resident Adi Zinder, above, checks out a Shaquille O'Neal Lakers jersey at Scorecard in Studio City. At left, CSUN film student Chad Sustin, right, browses other Lakers apparel as Scorecard employee Arrion Jafari, 16, helps. The Lakers will take on the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Wednesday at Staples Center.

Charlotte Schmid-Maybach/Staff Photographer