Jazz vs Sixers, Black Desert Club, Section 6 Row 7

Same VIP garage at Salt Palace. By now we know the drill. Walk across the street, through the main entrance, down to the first sub-floor. The Black Desert Club check-in is at the center. They hand you a lanyard badge and you're in. No maze of tunnels, no "am I supposed to be here?" anxiety. Just walk in and sit down.

The Black Desert Club sits a few tiers above the Toyota Club, tucked between the north and south sides. Recently renovated and it shows. More relaxed than the neighboring premium clubs but still a clear step up from general admission. It knows what it is and doesn't try to be anything else.

Buffet with a rotating menu that changes every game. This night was a Cajun-Southwest theme and they didn't hold back.

Flame grilled strip loin at the chef's table. Tuna crispy rice at the seafood station. Pineapple jalapeno bacon pizza from the action kitchen. Southwest chicken burritos. Spinach artichoke empanadas. Avocado crunch rolls. Jambalaya pasta.

At halftime the menu flips to loaded tater tots, cajun elote, churros, baklava, and a full dessert wall with cookies, brownies, ice cream sundaes, and a candy wall. A CANDY WALL.

Staff circles with drinks and handles requests, but the buffet is the move. Five stations deep, everything laid out and calling your name. You don't sit and wait for a menu. You graze like it's your job.

One complaint: the popcorn bag is still small. Premium buffet with strip loin and tuna crispy rice but the popcorn comes in a bag that would embarrass a movie theater. We need to talk about this.

Section 6, Row 7. Jazz bench side. Straight-on view of the full court.

You're about 9 rows from the floor. Close enough to hear coaches yelling. Far enough to see every play develop from baseline to baseline. The tactical view from here is actually better than courtside. You see rotations, cuts, spacing. Stuff that disappears when you're sitting on the hardwood staring at ankles.

You lose the "I could trip a player" intimacy. You gain the ability to actually watch basketball.

The railing in front of Row 7 has a tunnel dip underneath, which means kids can stand at the rail and watch without anyone's head blocking them. No standing on seats. No "Dad I can't see." If you're bringing the family, this matters more than any food menu.

Jazz vs Sixers. On paper, two tanking teams missing half their roster. No Maxey. No Embiid. No Paul George. No Oubre Jr. Philly showed up with what was essentially a receipt for a basketball team.

But that's the thing about premium seats on a bad game night. Tickets are cheaper, the crowd is looser, and you still get hoops. We got to watch hyped rookie VJ Edgecombe run the floor for Philly. Trendon Watford, Summer League Champion of the World, former Blazer, now a Sixer, getting real minutes. And Jabari Walker, the man who famously will NOT be taken to a haunted house, doing his thing.

Full disclosure: we're Blazer fans who ended up in Utah. Seeing our guys in different jerseys from Row 7 with strip loin and churros? That's a pretty good Saturday night.

If you want the full Blazers-at-Jazz experience, we've got two more reviews coming. One from courtside Row B. And one from behind enemy lines, first row behind the Jazz bench, cheering for Portland. That one got interesting.

I expected to feel far away after courtside two days earlier. I didn't. You can still read every jersey number. Still see players' faces when they argue a call. Nobody's sweat is landing on your nachos from up here, but the game still hits you. The sound carries. The energy reaches Row 7 just fine.

The exclusivity is a step down from Entrata. You know it, the club knows it, everyone knows it. Entrata is backstage. Black Desert is VIP. Both are premium. One makes you feel like you snuck in. The other makes you feel like you belong. Different feelings, both good.

The food is great but nothing made me stop chewing and think about it. At this price point, I want one dish that surprises me. Everything was solid. Nothing was a story.

This is the section I'd bring clients to. The section I'd bring my parents to. The section I'd buy season tickets in if I wanted to go to 41 games without going broke. It does everything well and nothing wrong.

Would I buy again? Already did. See you next game.