Eric Richardson / blogdowntown

Banners promote the NBA All-Star Game in February of 2011.

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — The NBA may not be making any money off pre-season games right now, but it can at least take solace in the fact that it has a big check coming from the City of Los Angeles.

$85,602.16 will be headed the league's way, the difference between special event costs estimated by city departments before February's All-Star Game and the actual costs tallied up after the fact.

City services ended up costing only $674,396.21, a good 11 percent less than the pre-event estimate.

In dollar figures, the Fire Department was the farthest off on its estimates, charging $55,334.41 less than its original estimate. In percent terms, Street Services' Street Cleaning team and the Building and Safety department were neck and neck, each estimating an amount roughly 83 percent greater than their final tallies.

Only LAPD managed to hit the nail exactly on the head, charging exactly the $417,780 it had estimated during the planning process.