The NBA delivered five games decided by 10 or fewer points, compared with the NFL’s two routs.
Fresh off of leading a dramatic 115–113 win over the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers superstar forward LeBron James made a bold claim.
“I love the NFL, but Christmas is our day,” James
told ESPN on Wednesday, referring to the two football games earlier that day.
The NBA has been playing on Christmas Day
since 1947, when the league had a triple header of games. Only the 1998 lockout interrupted the annual NBA tradition.
The NFL joined the party with a game on a consistent basis in the 2020s though there had been Christmas Day games on occasion
since 1971. Timing of the games, however, can create a problem for NFL teams if Christmas falls on a Wednesday, which gives minimal time to recover from the previous weekend.
The four teams that played on Christmas Day had all played on Saturday to help with recovery time.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes had been vocal about the
timing issue, but his 15–1 team took care of business with a
29–10 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers (10–6) on Wednesday as if there had been a full week of rest. The Baltimore Ravens (11–5) also looked sharp on a short week amid a 31–2 rout of the Houston Texans (9–7) in the other Christmas contest as Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson dominated with three touchdowns.
“I don’t dislike it. I think it’s an honor to play on Christmas Day, because first of all, it’s an important day,” Jackson
told reporters on Monday. “It’s Christmas. There are not that many games on. It’s a very big stage to play on, so it’s definitely an honor.”
For James, it’s been a regular honor. He has appeared in 19 games on Christmas Day in his career, which began in 2003. Wednesday’s game could go down as one of his greatest holiday performances.
James scored 31 points and dished 10 assists as he helped his 17–13 team stave off a rally by the Warriors (15-14). Golden State superstar guard Steph Curry buried two three-pointers in the final 12.2 seconds to tie the game, but Lakers guard Austin Reaves won the game on a last-second layup and took the spotlight from James for a moment.
“Man, I‘ll be honest with y’all, that last play was not for me, it was for Bron,”
Reaves said in a Lakers video. “But I got the opportunity to go win us a game, and that’s what ended up happening.
“That’s a big win for the team. Huge win. It’s Christmas Day. I'll remember this one for a long time.”
The NBA delivered four other close games on Wednesday as the Phoenix Suns (15–14) were the only team to win by more than six points, 110–100 over the Denver Nuggets (16–12). The Philadelphia 76ers (11–17) stunned the 22–8 Boston Celtics 118–114, the New York Knicks (20–10) edged the 15–15 San Antonio Spurs 117–114, and the Minnesota Timberwolves (15–14) beat the 19–11 Dallas Mavericks 105–99.
“I’m happy I got to play on Christmas,” Wolves guard Anthony Edwards
told reporters.
