A guide to watching NBA games this Christmas

The NBA will give basketball fans more than 13 hours of basketball action on Christmas this year, continuing its 76-year holiday tradition.

For the 16th consecutive year, the NBA has five games scheduled for Christmas Day.

When did the NBA play its first Christmas game?

The NBA played its first Christmas game — the New York Knicks vs. the Providence Steam Rollers — in the league’s second season back in 1947, according to the NBA.

That means that the NBA took its place at the head of the Christmas tradition table long before the NFL played its first Christmas game in 1971.

Despite NBA games being a long-standing holiday tradition, viewership for the NFL’s Christmas games has quickly surpassed the NBA’s.

In 2022, an average of 4.318 million viewers tuned into the NBA’s five Christmas games compared to the 21.88 million average viewers who watched the NFL’s three games, according to NBC Sports.

Related

• The history of NFL Christmas games — and who’s playing this year

Have the Utah Jazz played on Christmas before?

Unfortunately for Utah Jazz fans, the Jazz will not be playing on Christmas 2023. The team didn’t play on the holiday last year, either.

The Jazz have played on Christmas eight times in the team’s 50-year history, with the most recent game being in 2021, the Deseret News previously reported.

What NBA games will be played on Christmas in 2023?

The NBA will have five games on Christmas Day in 2023.

Here is your NBA holiday lineup:

• Milwaukee Bucks vs. New York Knicks at 10 a.m. MST on ESPN.

• Golden State Warriors vs. Denver Nuggets at 12:30 p.m. MST on ABC and ESPN.

• Boston Celtics vs. Los Angeles Lakers at 3 p.m. MST on ABC and ESPN.

• Philadelphia 76ers vs. Miami Heat at 6 p.m. MST on ESPN.

• Dallas Mavericks vs. Phoenix Suns at 8:30 p.m. MST on ESPN.

The Heat are the only team playing this year that didn’t play on Christmas Day last year, according to ESPN.

When the league first started playing on Christmas, games were scheduled between regional rivalries to reduce travel on the holiday, but the tradition has evolved to feature some of the NBA’s most notorious teams, as the Deseret News previously reported.

This season is no different. The slate of games is full of star power.

Each of the five games will feature at least one former NBA MVP — LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Stephen Curry, Joel Embiid, Giannis Antetokounmpo or Nikola Jokic.

James will extend his record for most Christmas games appearances to 18 and his record as the Christmas games career leader in points (460) during the Lakers’ matchup against the Celtics, according to the NBA.