NBA insider Shams Charania on Sunday unveiled the 10 NBA teams set to play on Christmas Day this year. Within minutes of his tweet being posted, NBA fans were already debating which teams should be angriest about being left out.
The early front-runner for that distinction was the Atlanta Hawks, who won’t play on Christmas this year despite making the 2021 lineup. The team’s star point guard, Trae Young, tweeted a string of emojis, including the thumbs down symbol, 10 minutes after Charania sent his tweet.
“Perhaps some of Young’s ire is drawn from the fact that the Hawks played at Madison Square Garden on Christmas 2021, but he missed out due to being placed in the league’s COVID-19 health and safety protocols,” wrote Gilbert McGregor for Sporting News.
However, as the snub debate raged on, a different — and probably stronger — candidate emerged: the Miami Heat. In his article, McGregor explained why their exclusion is notable.
“Excluding the Heat might be the biggest headscratcher as Miami finished with the East’s No. 1 seed last season,” he wrote. “The Heat are the only team that finished in the top four of their respective conference to not get the nod to play on Christmas in 2022.”
Heat star Jimmy Butler has yet to share his own string of emojis about the news.
Which NBA teams are playing on Christmas Day 2022?
According to Charania, five NBA games will take place on Christmas Day this year. The teams involved include the most recent NBA champions, the Golden State Warriors.
Here’s the full slate:
- Milwaukee Bucks v. Boston Celtics.
- Philadelphia 76ers v. New York Knicks.
- Phoenix Suns v. Denver Nuggets.
- Los Angeles Lakers v. Dallas Mavericks.
- Memphis Grizzlies v. Golden State Warriors.
Why do NBA fans care who plays on Christmas?
Watching NBA games on Christmas Day has become an annual tradition for basketball fans. This year marks the 75th edition of the programming, better known as NBA on Christmas Day.
The NBA website includes a timeline of memorable moments from games that took place on Christmas. For example, a 2004 Christmas game marked the first time Shaquille O’Neil and Kobe Bryant met on the court since Shaq was traded from the Lakers to the Miami Heat.
There’s such a strong association between the NBA and Christmas that some sports fans actually get annoyed when the NFL schedules games for the same day. This year, there will be three NFL games on Christmas Day:
- Green Bay Packers v. Miami Dolphins.
- Denver Broncos v. Los Angeles Rams.
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers v. Arizona Cardinals.