The NBA has been a Christmas Day staple for a few years, placing a few of the most anticipated matchups on the particular vacation. On Friday, ESPN’s Shams Charania revealed what this 12 months’s NBA Christmas Day matchups might be.
By way of Shams Charania: “🚨🎄NBA Christmas Day 2025 on ABC and ESPN, per sources:
– Cleveland Cavaliers at New York Knicks
– San Antonio Spurs at Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder
– Houston Rockets at LA Lakers
– Dallas Mavericks at Golden State Warriors
– Minnesota Timberwolves at Denver Nuggets”
🚨🎄 NBA Christmas Day 2025 on ABC and ESPN, per sources:
– Cleveland Cavaliers at New York Knicks
– San Antonio Spurs at Oklahoma Metropolis Thunder
– Houston Rockets at LA Lakers
– Dallas Mavericks at Golden State Warriors
– Minnesota Timberwolves at Denver Nuggets
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 8, 2025
To minimal shock, a few of the league’s greatest groups and gamers are highlighting their Christmas Day slate, like star matchups of Donovan Mitchell in opposition to Jalen Brunson, Victor Wembanyama in opposition to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Kevin Durant in opposition to LeBron James and Luka Doncic, Anthony Davis and Cooper Flagg in opposition to Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler, and Anthony Edwards in opposition to Nikola Jokic.
In fact, the largest markets are taking part in on Christmas Day, with the Jayson Tatum-less Boston Celtics a transparent exception. And, once more to minimal shock, the Sacramento Kings are neglected of the enjoyable for the twenty second consecutive 12 months.
Not so enjoyable truth: The Sacramento Kings have solely performed on Christmas Day twice of their historical past.
Most just lately, they confronted the Dallas Mavericks in 2003, a recreation of which they misplaced.
Hopefully at some point we’ll get to see the Beam Staff play some Christmas Day basketball once more! pic.twitter.com/lFVKkRT9rY
— E Practice Talks Sports activities (@ETrainSports) August 8, 2025
The Kings haven’t performed on Christmas Day since 2003 once they had been taken down by the Dirk Nowitzki-led Dallas Mavericks in Sacramento. The 12 months prior, the Kings beat the Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas, however these had been the one two cases the Sacramento Kings had been featured on the NBA’s Christmas slate.
Christmas Day 2002! Kings beat Lakers 105-99 pic.twitter.com/3bCMrYkR9L
— Sacramento Kings 24/7 (@sackings_247) December 25, 2023
Sacramento’s 22-year Christmas Day drought is the second-longest within the NBA, trailing solely the Charlotte Hornets, who’ve by no means performed on the vacation.
In fact, there isn’t any shock or shock that the Kings should not scheduled to play on Christmas this 12 months, however the lengthy drought is definitely a disappointment. With how the Kings are structured, they won’t be a marquee-enough staff to play on Christmas for a very long time, as there isn’t any clear path for important enchancment.
The Kings have made only one playoff look within the final 19 years, and with no superstar-caliber gamers on the roster, the Kings stay a bottom-tier NBA staff till they persuade everybody in any other case. Because it stands, the 2023 “Beam Staff” run was an anomaly.
Of the 4 NBA groups that haven’t performed a Christmas Day recreation since no less than 2010, the Kings, Hornets, Detroit Pistons, and Indiana Pacers, Sacramento and Charlotte are the one ones that aren’t trending in the best course. There’s a likelihood that new common supervisor Scott Perry can flip the Kings round and make them a marquee staff, however he has some work to do.
