For NBA fans around the world there’s no better feeling than being able to watch your team play on Christmas Day.
Am NBA schedule tradition that stretches back to the league’s inauguration, the Christmas Day fixture has been a mainstay since 1946.
Some fans will be given an extra boost of Christmas joy if their side wins, whilst the losing team’s fans can open another gift and forget about it.
Some of the NBA’s greatest moments have occurred during the magical Christmas Day fixtures, so here’s a look at some of the best.
We head back to 2018 for our first Christmas Day memory which took place between the Boston Celtics and the Philadelphia 76’ers.
The game was tightly contested and things really got hot late in the fourth quarter. Big players know when to make a big moment and Boston’s Kyrie Irving certainly did that.
Irving, who was 26 at the time, took the ball with just 20 seconds on the clock with his team trailing. Under immense pressure though the wizard managed to tie the game and send it to overtime.
His heroics were not over though and the sharp-shooter sank back-to-back 3-pointers in overtime to help guide his Boston Celtics to a 121-114 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers.
We all know LeBron James as one of the best to ever grace a basketball court now, but back in 2010 the special talent still had a lot to prove.
It did not take long for James to light up Christmas though as he stepped onto the court for his Christmas Day debut with the Miami Heat.
James finished with 27 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in a 96-80 victory against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Whilst the numbers might not be instantly eye-catching he became the first player in 40 years and the fourth overall at the time to record a triple-double on Christmas Day.
He joined elite company in Oscar Robertson, John Havlicek and Billy Cunningham to achieve the accolade.
Once team-mates at the LA Lakers, it was Christmas Day of 2004 that pitted two of the NBA’s top talents against each other on opposing teams.
Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal would go head-to-head for the first time since Shaq’s trade to the Miami Heat.
Both stars shined in the game with Bryant scoring 42 points but it was Shaq and the Miami heat who had the last laugh as O’Neal’s double-double helped Miami to a 104-102 victory over the Lakers.
The victory helped the Heat extend their winning run to 11 games.
Christmas Day 1985 potentially saw one of the most dramatic comebacks in NBA history take place as the New York Knicks and the Boston Celtics faced off.
The Celtics were dominant for much of the game and had managed to build themselves a 25-point lead which was surely unassailable.
Step forward rookie Patrick Ewing. His 32 points and 11 rebounds helped secure the most unlikely of wins for the Knicks.
The game went into double-overtime where the Knicks eventually ran out 113-104 winners.
The loss did very little to damage the Celtics season who ultimately went on to win the NBA Championship.
Some performances stand the test of time and Bernard King’s display on Christmas Day 1984 is still record-breaking.
King shone for his side as he put on a breath-taking display scoring no fewer than 60 points in the match between his New York Knick side and the New Jersey Nets.
The feet saw King earn the highest-scoring performance in NBA Christmas Day history. King became only the third player to score at least 50 points on Christmas Day. He joined Wilt Chamberlain (59 points in 1961) and Rick Barry (50 points in 1966).
Despite a heroic performance he somehow ended up on the losing side.
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