The top two teams in the NBA meet on Christmas Day as the Suns host the Warriors.
Hawks at Knicks, 12 p.m. ET, ESPN
• Kemba Walker is coming off a 44-point effort in New York’s loss to Washington on Thursday. It was Walker’s highest-scoring game since scoring 44 points on Dec. 11, 2019 as a member of the Celtics. Walker has 19 career games with 40+ points; his teams are 5-14 in those games.
• The New York Knicks have played the most games on Christmas Day with 53 entering Christmas 2021. The Knicks are 22-31 (.415) on Christmas Day, including a 21-24 (0.467) mark at home. The Knicks are looking to snap a six-game Christmas Day losing streak, dating back to 2012. New York’s last win on Christmas came in 2011 behind a 37-point effort from Carmelo Anthony.
• New York defeated Atlanta 99-90 on Nov. 27 – their first meeting since the Hawks eliminated the Knicks in the first round of the 2021 playoffs in five games. The Knicks have won five straight and seven of the last eight regular season meetings with the Hawks, dating back to 2019.
Celtics at Bucks, 2:30 p.m. ET, ABC
• The Celtics defeated the Bucks 117-103 on Dec. 13 behind a season-high 42 points from Jayson Tatum. Jrue Holiday was the defender on Tatum for a team-high 6:52 of matchup time and held Tatum to seven points (3-6 FG, 1-4 3P). However, in 6:02 of combined matchup time against Khris Middleton, Pat Connaughton, Javonte Smart and Grayson Allen, Tatum scored 21 points and missed only one shot (8-9 FG, 3-4 3P).
• Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo joins Denver’s Nikola Jokic – the players that have combined to win the past three regular season MVP awards – as the only two players in the league currently averaging at least 20 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists.
• Boston’s Jayson Tatum is tied for second in the league in clutch scoring with 59 points this season. Tatum is shooting 18-50 (36%) from the field, just 2-15 (13.3%) from 3-point range, but is a perfect 21-21 from the free throw line with the game on the line. Only Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid has made more clutch free throws this season than Tatum.
Warriors at Suns, 5 p.m. ET, ABC
• The Suns (25-6. 0.839) and Warriors (26-6, 0.813) enter Christmas Day with the top two records in the NBA and the only teams with a win percentage over 80%. According to Elias, this is only the third time that two teams with win percentages of 0.800 or better have met on Christmas Day; it is the fifth time the teams with the two best records have met on Christmas.
• This is the third meeting of the season between these teams as they split their games on Nov. 30 (PHX win) and Dec. 3 (GSW win). In two games against the Suns this season, Stephen Curry has been held to 17.5 ppg – his lowest average against any team he’s faced more than once. Mikal Bridges has defended Curry for a team-high 11:39 over two games and held him scoreless on 0-4 shooting from the field and 0-1 from 3-point range.
• In two games against the Warriors this season, Deandre Ayton is averaging team highs of 23.5 points and 8.5 rebounds. Jordan Poole has led the Warriors in scoring (21.0 ppg on 51.9 FG%), while Draymond Green has done a bit of everything (8.5 ppg, 10.0 rpg, 7.0 apg, 3.0 spg. 2.0 bpg).
Nets at Lakers, 8 p.m. ET, ABC/ESPN
• The Lakers enter Christmas Day having lost four straight and will look to avoid their first five-game skid since March 2019. Three of Los Angeles’ six biggest losses (-18 twice, -28 on Thursday in final game before Christmas) of the season have come in the past eight days. The Lakers’ 96.2 offensive rating during this four-game losing streak is 6.3 points per 100 possessions lower than any other team over their past four games.
• The Nets are expected to have James Harden back in the lineup, but will be without Kevin Durant due to Health and Safety Protocols. So far this season, Brooklyn’s net rating has dropped off by only 0.8 points per 100 possessions with Durant off the court while Harden is on court. The Nets’ offensive efficiency drops by nearly two points per 100 possessions and their assist rate falls by 9.1% without Durant.
• Los Angeles’ Carmelo Anthony has averaged 31.0 points in six games on Christmas Day, which is the fourth-highest mark among players who have played at least six games on Christmas. Melo trails only Jerry West (32.2 ppg in 6 games), Wilt Chamberlain (31.7 ppg in 6 games) and Oscar Robertson (31.4 ppg in 12 games).
Mavericks at Jazz, 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
• Utah enters Christmas Day with the league’s best offense, scoring 117.1 points per 100 possessions, which is 4.4 points higher than second-ranked Charlotte. That is nearly the same margin that separates the second-ranked Hornets (112.7) from the 20th-ranked Mavericks (108.2).
• Dallas’ projected starting lineup of Dorian Finney-Smith, Kristaps Porzingis, Dwight Powell, Frank Ntilikina and Jalen Brunson has not played a single minute together so far this season.
• The Mavericks enter Christmas Day ranked last in the league in points in the paint (40.3 per game) and now must face the league’s top rim protector in Rudy Gobert, who allows opponents to shoot just 46.1% at the basket, which is the lowest mark among the 91 players that face at least three shots at the basket each game.
