With five games on the Christmas Day menu you’re guaranteed to love at least a little bit of hardwood on Santa’s big day! All of the big names are in action from Lebron to Steph, Westbrook to Steph and D-Wade to Kawhi. We have all of the bets, odds, picks and predictions straight ahead. The NBA truly outdid themselves this year and filled the stocking of orange leather lovers everywhere. They’re debuting new uniform combos for every team and packing in the best teams across the league from all angles.
For each game preview, make sure to click each games main image below!
The Celtics and Knicks rivalry spans back quite a ways and really took off in the 50’s. In fact, these two met five years in a row to open the decade and all-time they’ve faced off in 15 different playoff battles through the years. The most recent came in 2013 when the Knicks torched the green and white in six games. It was a hard fought series but those days and those teams are now long gone. They each have a new face. They each have younger players and brighter futures and they each will put on one hell of a show on Christmas Day!
This rivalry really took off two seasons ago. In 2015, the Cleveland Cavaliers limped into the NBA Finals without Kevin Love only to be bounced by the GSW in six games. The following year, the two met again on the league’s biggest stage. This time, though, the Warriors were sporting the leagues best ever regular season record at 73-9, narrowly beating the 1996 Bulls iconic 72-10 mark. The only difference, the Bulls held it together and won the title. The Warriors lost to the Cavaliers in seven games and on their home court. This game marks the second time these two have met on Christmas Day – Golden State beat the Cavs last year 89-83.
The Bulls and Spurs rivalry dates back quite a few years. The big factor between the two of these two franchises though is that they are number three and four on the all-time NBA titles list. The Bulls owned the early 90’s, taking home championships in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997 and 1998. While, the Spurs turned it on right afterward, locking in the gold in 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007 and 2014. Sadly for San Antonio fans, the Bulls are a perfect 6-0 at the end of the year, while the cowboy boots have a blemish to their name at 5-1. Who knows though, with the league’s best home record at 15-2 heading into this one, maybe this is the year San Antonio ties up the standings.
These two cities don’t really have a rivalry because ever since Oklahoma City took over for Seattle, the Wolves have been pretty brutal. Seriously, let’s call it what it is, Minnesota has been awful for the past decade and then some. Before the move to the midwest though, the Seattle Sonics (or Supersonics) battled it out constantly with the Timberwolves. In one of their final trips to the post season, Seattle also knocked Minnesota out of the playoffs three games to two in 2000. That would also be the last time the two would meet in the postseason. The rivalry has not yet been renewed. Oklahoma City still sits consistently in the elite category while the Wolves rebuild looks to be continuing for yet another season. With such pieces like Andrew Wiggins, Zach LaVine and Karl Anthony-Towns in place though, the future looks bright for a rekindling of old foes.
This game will be a walk off win for the Clippers. It certainly wasn’t always like that though, in fact, up until just a few years ago this was a very one-sided affair. In fact, between 1997 and 2000, the Clippers lost 16 straight games to the purple and gold. Times have certainly changed though and the more powerful Clips are in the midst of their revenge period. Their latest run against the lowly Lakers has them on an 11-game win streak, with a potential twelfth coming on Sunday afternoon.
