The MVP is playing.
So are the reigning champions, north of the border.
And out in L.A., the NBAB次元官网网址檚 newest dynamic duos will square off as well.
On the 65th day of the season, with 454 games B次元官网网址� more than one-third of the schedule B次元官网网址� already in the books, the NBAB次元官网网址檚 unofficial start date has arrived. The annual Christmas Day quintupleheader of games is Wednesday, the day where the casual fan typically turns their attention toward the NBA.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 going to be cool, man,B次元官网网址� said Toronto guard Kyle Lowry, whoB次元官网网址檒l be making his Christmas debut. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 going to be very cool. IB次元官网网址檝e always watched it on TV ever since I was a young child. And itB次元官网网址檚 going to be awesome to step foot on that floor on Christmas Day, have my family and friends around and have the whole world watching.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檒l be my first time instead of watching the game actually being in one. ThatB次元官网网址檚 amazing. IB次元官网网址檓 looking forward to it.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址� Toronto Raptors (@Raptors)
Christmas Can't Come Soon Enough 馃摉 禄
The good news from a ratings perspective: Four of the Eastern ConferenceB次元官网网址檚 five best teams so far are on the schedule, all playing each other. The bad news: The two worst teams in the Western Conference so far are also on the schedule. But LeBron James and Anthony DavisB次元官网网址� first Christmas as Los Angeles Lakers teammates B次元官网网址� facing off against the crosstown rival Clippers B次元官网网址� should certainly draw plenty of eyeballs.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 Christmas Day,B次元官网网址� Lakers coach Frank Vogel said. B次元官网网址淚 hope everybody has a great holiday and spends some time with their families, but itB次元官网网址檚 about the next opponent in front of us. We have to get a win.B次元官网网址�
The other matchups: Boston goes to Toronto in the NBAB次元官网网址檚 first Christmas game in Canada, followed by Milwaukee visiting Philadelphia, Houston going to Golden State, the Lakers-Clippers contest and then a nightcap between New Orleans and a Denver team led by Nikola Jokic and off to the best start in franchise history at 20-8.
B次元官网网址淵ouB次元官网网址檙e always told that the best teams play on Christmas, the All-Star players play on Christmas and the whole world is watching this game,B次元官网网址� said MilwaukeeB次元官网网址檚 Giannis Antetokounmpo, the leagueB次元官网网址檚 reigning MVP who has even better numbers this year than he did a year ago.
The potential certainly exists for so
me playoff-preview matchups. ItB次元官网网址檚 not a stretch to think that the Raptors and Celtics or 76ers and Bucks will wind up meeting in a best-of-seven come April or May. And the same holds true in Los Angeles, where the Clippers and Lakers might be the best of the West.
The Lakers have Davis and James. The Clippers now have Paul George and two-time NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard. Those two pairings shook up the leagueB次元官网网址檚 landscape considerably when they came together this past summer, and so far with the Lakers are 24-6 and the Clippers at 22-10 neither side has much to complain about.
B次元官网网址淚 think weB次元官网网址檙e good,B次元官网网址� George said. B次元官网网址淚 think weB次元官网网址檙e good.B次元官网网址�
The Clippers are 10-3 in games where both Leonard and George start. Davis and James are one of two duos where both are averaging more than 25 points per game; Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins in Minnesota are the other.
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The pairing of James and Davis has looked spectacular at times already. If there was any confusion about whether those two superstar talents could work together, those questions have been answered.
B次元官网网址淲e know what the end goal is,B次元官网网址� Davis said. B次元官网网址淎nd when you have guys like that, with veteran leadership, when everyone is locked in to our goal, itB次元官网网址檚 easy for us to jell together.B次元官网网址�
James puts it even more simply.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 about getting better, each and every day,B次元官网网址� James said.
Christmas is where last yearB次元官网网址檚 Lakers season went wrong B次元官网网址� they were fourth in the West, then James got hurt on Dec. 25 and L.A. went on a freefall out of the playoff picture. And injuries will affect some of what the league gets to display on Christmas this year as well.
Golden State has been doomed by injuries all season, with no Klay Thompson and no Stephen Curry for much of this season. New Orleans was picked to be part of the showcase day because of No. 1 overall pick Zion Williamson, who has yet to appear in a regular-season game B次元官网网址� his summer league was cut short by injury, and a stellar preseason ended the same way. And Toronto is missing several top players right now, including Pascal Siakam and Marc Gasol.
But make no mistake: The Raptors have been waiting a long time to be part of NBA Christmas. Wednesday is their first time on the holiday schedule since 2001.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檒l be interesting,B次元官网网址� Toronto coach Nick Nurse said. B次元官网网址淚 wish we had more of our regular guys playing in it, but weB次元官网网址檝e got to go play the game nevertheless. So weB次元官网网址檒l see. I think itB次元官网网址檒l be fun. IB次元官网网址檓 getting a lot of messages from back home. EverybodyB次元官网网址檚 going to be watching.B次元官网网址�
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Tim Reynolds, The Associated Press
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