That still only proves my point though.
Of course the salaries of the team's players affect the price of tickets. But you aren't paying to see a single player on the field/court. You're paying to see that player on a team trying to win, and hopefully winning.
But that individual is still not the product you came for. You came for the overall game and the hopes that your team will win. Not just to see Kobe, Lebron, or Jordan. (I don't know why I'm only using BBall players names lol)
The stadium is the store, not the cashier. The ticket taker/seller and the food slingers are the cashiers. The players are the CSR's/Mascots/poster boys. The product, is the game itself or the stadium experience of it.
Think about watching the game on TV. You don't usually have to pay anyone to see a game(ABC/CBS/NBC/etc. are free channels that make money of adverts). So how can the athlete be a commodity/product to the viewer?
And even to the corporations and people who own the teams, the athlete isn't a product. They're a tool or an employee.
Again, I get that you think this is one of those "matters of opinion", but it's actually not factual to say that the athletes are products. :{