NBA, the Christmas match schedule with Lakers, Celtics, Warriors

December 25 – 12.21pm – MILANO

A succulent Christmas, NBA 2025. Five courses, or rather five games. Ranging from aperitifs to dinners, up to the late-night coffee killer for the greediest. A binge of baskets that will begin at 6pm Italian time with New York-San Antonio and then continue at 8.30pm with Dallas-Minnesota, continue at 11pm with Boston-Philadelphia, continue late into the night, at 2am with Golden State-Los Angeles Lakers and finally ending at dawn with the kick-off of Phoenix-Denver scheduled for 4.30. Prepare an armchair, provisions and organize yourself with coffee to stay awake, at least those who want to risk the tirade until the first light of Boxing Day, and enjoy a gargantuan basketball menu.

knicks-spurs (ore 18)

—

The Garden in Manhattan, above Penn Station, always has its charm. And the Knicks these days are playing their best basketball of the season, perhaps even the best in years. New York sports a 19-10 record which earns them 3rd place in the East. Jalen Brunson is the franchise's man director, Karl-Anthony Towns is the new addition, the offensive big man who tries to make a team still looking for the cocktail more spectacular ideal by mixing the blue collar soul of the many defense and competitive players brought together by coach Thibodeau and the soft special effects, from theater lights, of the former Minnesota center. The Spurs? Better than expected. They showcase Victor Wembanyama, of course. The French giant chosen no. 1 of the 2024 draft, elected player of the last week, in great form. Chris Paul, 39 years old, will be the one to trigger it, but he still has many assists in his quiver. And watch out for freshman Stephon Castle. The Texans have a 15-14 record in the West, outsiders from a play-in perspective, but the Knicks are heavy favorites.

mavs-timberwolves (ore 20.30)

—

The rematch of the 2024 Western Conference final. Then the Texans won, who reached the Finals, then lost to Boston. A lot has changed since June: the Mavs added Klay Thompson on the perimeter, a further offensive resource alongside Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving. They struggle a bit defensively, on the outside, but they go into the Christmas match with a great record: 19 wins and 10 losses. Very favourites, therefore. Above all because a lot has changed for the Wolves in the meantime, but in a negative way. The Towns/Randle exchange hasn't worked so far in terms of results, the current record of 14-14, just good for 10th place out of 15 teams in the West, rules out any misunderstandings. Minny is back from three consecutive defeats, looking for herself, with the franchise star, Ant Edwards who does and undoes, talented and immature. Will he be able to flip the Christmas script?

celtics-76ers (ore 23)

—

The reigning champions have respected the script, so far with 22 victories and 7 defeats, they travel with automatic pilot engaged without forcing the pace, which is a long season. Along the way they recovered Kristaps Porzingis, the Latvian center injured during the last playoffs, an important step. The Jays, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, are the driving forces, coach Mazzulla's team plays by heart. And Philadelphia? Almost everything has gone wrong so far. The 76ers risked an “all in”, adding the veteran Paul George to Joel Embiid and the rampant Tyrese Maxey. They were counting on competing with everyone in the East, yet so far they have been a flop. With Embiid and George more injured than on the court. The record, 10-17, is concerning. The good news is that they are 7-3 in their last 10 outings, recovering, and that Embiid, sent off with the Spurs, will be on the field, put back together with duct tape. The 76ers will try to show off the right outfit for the occasion, America is watching them on TV. Will it be enough?

warriors-lakers (ore 2)

—

Redemption tests. Ambitious, traditional teams with big names and winning records compete. So what's wrong? The recent performance, after the excellent double start, has been a disaster. The Warriors (15-13 record) have lost 7 of their last 10 games, Steph Curry is shooting 38% from the field in December and there is no sign of another emerging star. Jonathan Kuminga is on the market, coach Kerr is tweaking the rotations, which are long, but is struggling to find the right mix of protagonists and minutes. And the Lakers? 16-13 record, 7th place in the West, half a game ahead of the Dubs, 5-5 in their last 10 outings. Mediocrity. This is not enough, it is likely that reinforcements will arrive soon, perhaps in exchange for D'Angelo Russell who is not the answer to the yellow and purple problems and whose contract is expiring. Two sick teams, motivated to take advantage of the Christmas showcase to show themselves on the mend. The race is wide open on paper. Who doesn't want a point-to-point finale with LeBron and Curry versus as a Christmas present?

suns-nuggets (ore 4.30)

—

Kevin Durant and Nikola Jokic, not a lot. Two of the top 10 NBA scorers compete in Arizona. Durant has been limited by injuries, like all the Suns, who will probably be without Devin Booker this time. Phoenix has lost three times in a row, has a disappointing 14-14 record, is considering trading Jusuf Nurkic, the Bosnian center. In short, not exactly a peaceful Christmas for the Suns who urgently need to send a signal of recovery. Denver is lazy and indolent, especially with the little ones, defeated even by Portland recently, which punished its sins of presumption. However, the Nuggets (16-11), fifth in the West, when they put their mind and desire into it, remain a six-man rotation – minimalist – a team of excellence, for peaks in performance. The Joker is playing at MVP levels, Russell Westbrook brings intensity from the bench and raises the pace. There will be no risk of getting bored.