LeBron James on playing in his 20th Christmas Day game

[ASFN Admin]

For decades, Christmas has been a showcase day for the NBA, and it has scheduled some of its biggest marquee matchups each season on that day. Just as Americans look forward to NFL football on Thanksgiving, they anticipate exciting basketball action on Dec. 25 each year.

This year, the Lakers, as usual, will take the court, and they will face the Houston Rockets. That means a clash between LeBron James and Kevin Durant, two of the greatest players of the past dozen years or so.

Players may rather spend the holiday with their loved ones, but at the same time, getting to play on Christmas is an honor. That's the attitude James displayed when asked about this year's yuletide game involving his team, which will be his record 20th appearance on the holiday.

“I'd much rather be at home with my family. But I mean, it's the game, it's the game that I love. It's a game I watched when I was a kid on Christmas Day, watching a lot of the greatest play the game on Christmas. It's always been an honor to play it. Obviously, I'm gonna be completely honest, I would like to be home on the couch with my family all throughout the day. But our number is called, so we have to go out and perform and I look forward to it.”

LeBron James on playing his NBA-record 20th Christmas Day game this week:

“I'd much rather be at home with my family. But I mean, it's the game, it's the game that I love. It's a game I watched when I was a kid on Christmas Day, watching a lot of the greatest play the game on… pic.twitter.com/lo85glVwPk

— Tomer Azarly (@TomerAzarly) December 22, 2025

A few of James' Christmas Day games came against the Lakers during the Kobe Bryant era. In 2009, his Cleveland Cavaliers took on Los Angeles, and his Miami Heat played against the Purple and Gold in 2010 and 2013. James' squad emerged victorious each time.

As far as the Lakers are concerned, this will be the 27th consecutive season they have played on Christmas. In total, it will be their 52nd game on the holiday, and only the New York Knicks have played more Christmas Day games.

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: LeBron James on playing in his 20th Christmas Day game

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