These NBA players are a gift to watch on Christmas
Christmas brings out the NBA stars.
From Dolph Schayes to Bill Russell to Oscar Robertson to Michael Jordan to Kobe Bryant to LeBron James to Kevin Durant to Steph Curry, the biggest names and best players have been a part of the league’s Christmas schedule.
This Dec. 25 is the same.
There are familiar All-Star faces in the five games Wednesday: James, Durant, Curry, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, plus newcomers to the Christmas Day extravaganza: Victor Wembanyama and Anthony Edwards, both of whom are expected to be fixtures on the NBA’s Dec. 25 calendar.
Here are the top NBA players to watch in the 2024 Christmas Day games:
(All games are on ESPN, ABC, Disney+ and ESPN+; all times Eastern)
San Antonio Spurs vs. New York Knicks, noon
Spurs forward-center Victor Wembanyama
The gifted 7-footer, Wembanyama is headed for his first All-Star appearance and first All-NBA selection. He averages 24.8 points, 9.9 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.1 steals and league-leading 4.0 blocks.
Knicks guard Jalen Brunson
Brunson scored 38 points in a victory against Milwaukee on Christmas last season – the most by a Knicks player since Bernard King dropped a Christmas-record 60 points in 1984.
Knicks forward-center Karl-Anthony Towns
A New Jersey native, Towns gets a chance to play close to family and friends in his first season with the Knicks. He’s averaging 24.7 points, a league-best and career-high 13.9 rebounds and shooting 53.7% from the field and 45.6% on 3-pointers. He’s second in double-doubles with 25 and looking like an All-Star.
Minnesota Timberwolves at Dallas Mavericks, 2:30 p.m.
Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards
Edwards, who made his first All-NBA team last season and won a gold medal with Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics, will make his Christmas debut. He’s putting together another strong season: 25.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game, shooting 44.4% from the field. As one of the young faces in the league, Edwards, 23, will have more Dec. 25 games.
Mavericks guard Luka Dončić
Dončić’s Christmas Day scoring efforts: 27 in 2020, 32 in 2022 and 50 (plus 15 assists) in 2023, making him just one of four players to score at least 50 on Christmas. What present will the All-NBA player who is averaging 28.8 points, 8.5 rebounds, 8.1 assists and 2.0 steals give fans this season?
Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving
This is Irving’s seventh Christmas game and he has scored at least 25 points times times, including 37 pints in 2020 and 40 in 2018. By the way, Irving is having an All-Star year: 23.4 points, 5.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.2 steals. He is shooting 48.9% from the field, 45.1% on 3s and 88.6% on free throws.
Philadelphia 76ers vs. Boston Celtics, 5 p.m.
Celtics forward-guard Jayson Tatum
Just 26 years old, Tatum is getting ready for his eighth Christmas game. Tatum is a vital part of the Celtics machine and is one of the league’s best players – an MVP candidate averaging 28.8 points, 9.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.2 steals.
Celtics guard-forward Jaylen Brown
Like his friend and teammate Tatum, Brown has been involved in a Christmas game every season of his career, starting in 2016. The 2024 NBA Finals MVP is 5-3 on Dec. 25 games. This season, he’s averaging 23.9 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists.
76ers guard Tyrese Maxey
Maxey struggled in his first Christmas game last season (4-for-20 from the field, 1-for-8 on 3s), but in a standout season made the 2024 All-Star team. Maxey enters the game coming off a great performance Monday against San Antonio: 32 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and three steals.
76ers center Joel Embiid
Embiid, who has had a difficult season with injuries and was ejected in the second quarter Monday, is 3-1 on Christmas and has had at least 30 points in three of the games, including 35 in a victory over New York in 2022.
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Golden State Warriors, 8 p.m.
Lakers forward LeBron James
Talk about Christmas Day fixtures. He is as ubiquitous as Santa Claus at this time of the year. This is James’ 19th Dec. 25 game and 18th consecutive Christmas appearance. No one has played in more Christmas games or scored more points (476) on that date than James. With a victory, he can break a tie with Dwyane Wade as the all-time leader in Christmas wins at 11.
Lakers forward-center Anthony Davis
Davis scored 40 points and collected 13 rebounds in last season’s Christmas loss to Boston. This season, Davis is constructing another All-NBA-type season at 26.6 points, 11.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.2 blocks and 1.3 steals per game and 52.3% shooting from the field.
Warriors guard Steph Curry
Strangely, Curry has scored more than 20 points just once in his 10 Christmas games, and that was a 33-point effort in 2021.
Denver Nuggets vs. Phoenix Suns, 10:30 p.m.
Nuggets center Nikola Jokić
The Nuggets have a two-game Christmas winning streak, and Jokić posted a triple-double (41 points, 15 assists, 15 rebounds) in an overtime victory over Phoenix in 2022 and a near-triple-double (26 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists) in a victory over Golden State in 2023. Jokić and teammate Russell Westbrook are two of nine players to record a triple-double on Christmas.
Suns forward Kevin Durant
Durant is fourth on the all-time Christmas scoring list (315 points) and trails Oscar Robertson (377 points) for third place. Durant has scored at least 29 points in seven of 11 of his Dec. 25 games, including 44 in 2010.
Suns guard Devin Booker
Booker is 0-3 on Christmas, averaging just 15 points and shooting 34.3% from the field. He’s due for a big game.
Follow NBA reporter Jeff Zillgitt on social media @JeffZillgitt
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