The NBA has opened an unwrapped holiday gift.
The league’s Christmas Day schedule is set The Athletic reported the lineup first. It’s jam-packed full of superstars, rivalries and possible playoff previews.
The Eastern Conference features the Philadelphia 76ers Madison Square Garden will host the event. New York KnicksWhile the Milwaukee Bucks The following will be visited: Boston Celtics In a rematch their seven-game semifinal thriller conference.
The Western Conference LeBron James The Los Angeles Lakers Are ready to take on Luka Doncic The Dallas MavericksThe defending champion Golden State Warriors We will be glad to receive the Memphis Grizzlies To the Bay and the Phoenix Suns The two-time reigning MVP will be challenged Nikola JokicHealthy eating is key to a happy and healthy life. Jamal Murray The Denver Nuggets.
What teams and stars will shine the most? Who should have been invited to the NBA’s most important regular-season stage event? Will the Lakers make it to the playoffs on Christmas Day, or will they be out of the running?
All the action will be available on ESPN, ABC, and the ESPN App. Our NBA Insiders have answers to some of your most burning questions regarding the Christmas Day slate.
1. Which Christmas Day matchup would be the best conference finals showdown
Tim Bontemps: Bucks-Celtics. We saw the great Warriors-Grizzlies last season so that would make a fine answer. However, Milwaukee and Boston have to be our top choices. It was a seven-game classic series that both teams enjoyed. Better Boston, for the experience of reaching NBA Finals and adding Malcolm Brogdon And Danilo GallinariThe Bucks for being healthy and having fun Khris Middleton back. Sign me up now for seven more games
Andrew Lopez: Bucks-Celtics. Although I may be biased, I was there last season and it was a great matchup. He returns to the Bucks because they didn’t have Middleton healthy for that series. (Milwaukee also picked it up Joe Ingles And MarJon Beauchamp.)
Kevin Pelton: Bucks-Celtics. As much as it is fun to see the Nuggets, Grizzlies and Warriors take on the veteran Suns & Warriors, the East juggernauts showdown is the clear choice. Middleton was absent, but Boston and Milwaukee won seven of the 2022 playoffs. The Celtics are loading up this summer and I would love to see both teams play at their full potential.
Jamal Collier Grizzlies-Warriors. While I can watch seven Bucks-Celtics matches, I am a sucker for seeing a young team attempt to defeat the proven veterans. Memphis is trying to beat Golden State for the second season. With a trip in the Finals at stake, this is the type of thing that the great rivalries of NBA history are made from.
Bobby Marks Is it too late that Golden State should play the game? LA Clippers (sorry Memphis)? It must be Phoenix vs. Denver. Back-to back MVP Nikola Jokic with a healthy Jamal Murray Michael Porter Jr. should be considered for the West’s top seeds. Phoenix will be returning the same five starting players from the team that won 64 of the best NBA games in 2021-22, despite a Dallas flameout.
2. What is the best Christmas Day matchup? Not You’d like to see a featured?
Marks: Brooklyn Nets at 76ers. The uncertainty surrounding Christmas Day makes it difficult to understand Brooklyn’s reluctance to put Brooklyn on Christmas Day. Kevin Durant And Kyrie Irving. But Ben SimmonsIt would be tempting to kick off the five game schedule with a return to Philadelphia by ‘The Man from Philadelphia’.
Pelton: Nets at the 76ers. KD or not, pairing the teams who completed a huge trade in February (sending). James Harden To Philadelphia and Simmons to Philadelphia (for Simmons’ possible first return to Philly as an active participant) would have been much more anticipated than 76ers/Knicks.
Collier: Sixers-Miami Heat. Although I understand that the Knicks host a Christmas Day game, I would rather see New York play against a Chicago team. There is still time for Philly to Miami to play in the rematch of last season’s Eastern Conference semifinals — to go along Milwaukee-Boston. Joel EmbiidThe drama of that series was cut short by a player’s injury during the playoffs.
Lopez: Although most of the matchups appear very promising, I would have liked to have seen the. Atlanta Hawks The Knicks will face Philly. Apart from that, I think the only matchup I would prefer to see is if the NBA featured its young talent in one game. Although the world may not be eager for it, Orlando Magic vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Christmas Day showdown, but a No. 1 vs. No. Matchup of 2 Paolo Banchero vs. Chet Holmgren It would be enjoyable to view in an early slot.
Bontemps: Minnesota Timberwolves-Clippers. LA has the NBA’s deepest team. Tyronn Lue is an outstanding coach. Kawhi Leonard And Paul George They are healthy and will be the favourites to win the West. Minnesota: I believe the Wolves will win 50 of their last games since Kevin Garnett’s prime. And they have one the NBA’s most charismatic young stars. Anthony Edwards. “Ant-Man,” is the type of player that should be on Christmas Day’s stage. You’re like Ja Morant I was impressed with the Grizzlies’ performance this year. If they have a strong season, I can see the Wolves receiving the Christmas Day call next Christmas.
3. What player will score the most points Christmas Day?
Marks: Harden, with 45. I have already gone on record Harden will bounce back and be in the running for MVP. This will be strengthened by playing Christmas Day in New York against a team that is less talented.
Pelton: Embiid has 38 points. Embiid, last season’s league leader in scoring, scored a total of 64 points in back to back matchups against Knicks. This was Harden’s first week as a 76er. Embiid was able to make 27 free throws in the matchup. Newcomer Isaiah Hartenstein Hartenstein has more size to defend Embiid’s post but Hartenstein averaged 4.9 fouls every 36 minutes last season so it is unlikely that he will keep Embiid on the charity stripe.
Collier: Embiid has 41 points. I predict another MVP-caliber season by Embiid. He hasn’t played Christmas Day since 2019, but he has the right matchup for a game that will be a big one. Watch out for Embiid if he enters the season with “Christmas in the Garden” marked on his calendar.
Bontemps: Morant with 50. We all know Morant is a showman. We also know the Warriors. They were the West semifinalists for the vast majority. Gary Payton II Morant was injured. Let’s suppose Morant makes his Christmas Day debut and does something really special. He goes for a half dollar with the basketball world.
Lopez: Murray with 41. The guard was mid-season in 2020-21, when he tore his left anterior cruciate ligament. Murray will be able to showcase his skills to a national audience by playing in a Christmas home game against the Suns. Let’s say Murray scores 40+ points, while scoring eight 3-pointers to tie the NBA Christmas Day record.
4. LeBron will be playing in the record 17th Christmas Day Game. Which player is most likely to surpass the all time mark this Christmas?
Bontemps: Although James could be facing Doncic, the current answer is Doncic. I’m not going with him. Jayson Tatum. Tatum is currently 24 and has played on this holiday in each of his six NBA seasons. It’s also worth noting that it will be Jaylen Brown‘s septième Christmas game). It’s difficult to imagine anyone following James, but Tatum, an established star on a large-market club, has the time and the recipe.
Collier: Doncic. Doncic and the Mavericks are playing in their third consecutive Christmas Day game. Doncic, who is 23 years old, is already one of the brightest young stars in the league and one of the most watched. You can probably pencil Doncic’s team in for a Christmas game for the foreseeable future. This will give him an opportunity to break James’ record.
Lopez: Tatum is in his sixth season, and will be playing in his sixth Christmas Day match. Tatum plays for a team that is often featured on Christmas Day. Tatum’s franchise has played more Christmas Day games than Boston, the Knicks and Lakers. Tatum and his team are unlikely to slow down in the near future.
Pelton: Tatum is in fact ahead James’s speed. James was 27 when he participated in Christmas for the sixth year. Tatum will have a chance to keep appearing in Boston as long as he is there, seeing as how the Celtics have been holiday fixtures for years.
Marks: James’ record remains secure. Stephen Curry Will play his ninth Christmas Day Game, but the Warriors guard turns 35 in March. He is likely to fall short. Doncic is young, but Dallas can be certain that it will be a championship-caliber team.
5. Fill in the blank
Marks: Fourth. This isn’t an error. I will don my fortuneteller hat to predict. Russell Westbrook Coach Darvin Ham supports James’ vision. Davis remains healthy and James plays like an MVP during the first 10 weeks.
Collier: Seventh. LeBron, AD, and hopefully will be healthier. However, they’ll still be facing many of the same issues last season with an oddly constructed roster in an improved West.
Pelton: Seventh. Seventh. So, it wouldn’t surprise me if they reach comfortably above.500 by then, health permitting. After the calendar changes to 2023, the real test for the Lakers is coming.
Lopez: Eighth. L.A. is asking so many questions right at this moment. What will Westbrook look like? How will Westbrook look? Anthony DavisDoes’shoulder hold up How will the team mesh with Ham? Let’s not be too careful and say the Lakers will be at the bottom of the pack.
Bontemps: Eighth. Even with James and Davis as a healthy pair, the Lakers rank eighth in the West’s top six. It’s difficult to overcome 60% of the roster being on minimum contracts. The fact that these players are available for minimums is a sign of the Lakers lack of depth across the board. Could they do better? It is possible, especially with Davis and James playing 70-plus games. Davis has done this twice in 10 NBA seasons. James has also started to experience injury issues.
Bonus! Fact or fiction, the NBA should bring back the Christmas–themed jerseys.
Collier: Fact. Fact. first names on the jersey went hard. Please, more creativity and fewer sleeves
Lopez: Fact. Yes, but only with one condition: Please put the long-sleeved jackets in the closet.
Bontemps: Fiction. These jerseys are gross. There’s no way around it.
Marks: Fiction. Are we really in need of fiction? Another alternate jersey!?
Pelton: Fiction. They are the Christmas sweaters in NBA jerseys.