Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, Happy Kwanza, and Festivus to all. I hope whatever holiday you Rioters! celebrated, everyone was ready for it. One thing I love about Christmas, aside from spending time with friends and family, and getting new socks and underwear, is the sports. Since there’s been no NHL or NFL games on Christmas Day since 1971, its’ basketball or nothing and it’s the NBA’s showcase day (I’m not counting the usually boring college bowl game). This year, the NBA kicked its season off on Christmas day and it didn’t disappoint with a classic in LA (Bulls beat Lakers with last second shot), and an epic comeback in NYC (Carmelo putting up 17 in the 4th quarter the stun the Celtics by 2). As much as I do bitch about basketball, I do watch, especially on Christmas because some of the game’s greatest moments have occurred while we’re sitting in our living rooms deciding if the sweater grandma gave us is actually worth a re-gift.
5 - 2004 – Pistons/Pacers – On paper this doesn’t look like much of a classic Christmas game. It was a matchup of two .500 teams with the Pistons defeating the Pacers 98-93. What made it interesting was this was the first meeting of these two clubs since a November 19th brawl that resulted in Ron Artest and Stephan Jackson entering the stands and attacking fans. In what was considered the worst brawl in NBA history a total of 10 players were suspended for a total of 146 games (most notable Artest who was suspended for the remainder of the season and playoffs).
The hype surrounding the re-match of these two clubs made national headlines and most feared that there would be retaliation from Pacers fans on the Pistons (the original brawl started when some jackass in the stands hit Artest in the chest with a cup of Diet Coke). Thankfully the Pacers fans had more class than those in Detroit and the game went on without any incidents. Rip Hamilton led the Pistons in scoring with 25, while Reggie Miller scored 24 for the Pacers.
4 - 2010 – Lakers/Heat – In 2010 the Heat became the most hated team in the NBA outside of Miami, mainly because of Lebron James douchebag “I’m taking my talents to South Beach” comment, and Chris Bosh proclaiming the Heat to be a “Dream Team” (yeah, Vince Young wasn’t the first). The media followed the Heat’s circus wherever they went, but all eyes were on Christmas day when the Heat travelled to Los Angeles to take on the World Champion Lakers. The game was billed as two of the league’s best players going head to head. The cocky James against the aging Kobe Bryant.
The game lived up to the hype that surrounded it as two of the top teams in the league fought for 48 minutes. The Heat proved to be the better team that night, led by James’s 27 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists (James recorded his first triple-double of the season), the Heat took the victory 96-80. James’s “Dream Team” buddy Bosh was no slouch either kicking in 24 points and 13 rebounds.
The Lakers were flat and Bryant only chipped in 17 points. That tied for the Lakers lead with Pau Gasol.
While the Heat won that round, we all know what happened to the “Dream Team” in the NBA Finals against the Mavericks.
3 - 1984 – Nets/Knicks – The Knicks were an abomination in the 1984-85 season (only the Pacers and Warriors had worse records), but it didn’t stop them from still stealing the spotlight on Christmas day 1984 (the Knicks have appeared in 46 Christmas day games, most in the NBA).
Led by Bernard King, who scored a whopping 40 points in the first half (a Knicks Franchise record), the Knicks appeared to be pulling an upset over their rivals from across the Hudson. That was until reality set in and led by Buck Williams, the Nets stormed back and defeated the Knicks 120-114.
King finished with 60 points, which is an NBA record for Christmas Day games and he went on to be the eventual scoring champion.
2 - 2004 – Lakers/Heat - I can’t remember the last time an NBA game was so hyped than on Christmas Day of 2004, when the then Shaq-led Heat were making their first trip of the season to Los Angeles to face the Lakers. The dynasty that was once shared by Shaq and Kobe had crumbled in epic-proportions when they got into a pissing match about who was “the man” on those Laker teams. After a bunch of shit talking to the media on both sides, Shaq demanded a trade and ended up taking his talents to South Beach.
In one of the best Christmas Day games I’ve ever witnessed, it was an on the edge of your seat battle, that started with the Lakers giving Shaq a video tribute (a class move even though both Bryant and Shaq claimed they didn’t watch).
The head-to-head matchup was clearly dominated by Kobe who led all scorers with 42 points, but it was the Heat who was victorious thanks to Dwayne Wade who had 29 points and 10 assists. Despite fouling out with two minutes left to play (Shaq lost count how many fouls he had. Counting to five is a tough task for some), Shaq held his own scoring 24 points and had 11 rebounds.
1 - 1985 – Celtics/Knicks – As tough as it is to find a game to trump that battle in 2004, the best Christmas Day game had to be on December 25, 1985, which became known as “The Christmas Miracle at The Garden”. The Knicks were again terrible in 1985 and the rival Celtics were the leagues best (they would go on to win the NBA Championship). With injuries to Bernard King and Bill Cartwright, the Knicks would have to rely on a rookie named Patrick Ewing. They were no match for the likes of Bird, McHale, Ainge, and Parrish, right?That’s exactly how the game started with the Celtics dominating the Knicks. It was so bad the Celtics were beating the Knicks in the third quarter 58-33. That’s when the momentum changed and the Knicks went on a 20-5 run to finish the quarter.
Heading into the fourth quarter, Ewing took over scoring 18 points (12 in a row at one point). The Knicks got the lead reduced to two points and Rory Sparrow tied the game with two free throws, forcing overtime.
In overtime the Knicks struggled again, but battled back and tied the game on a Trent Tucker’s three pointer at the buzzer, forcing a second overtime. The Knicks dominated the second overtime and won 113-104, marking one of the biggest comebacks in Knicks history. Ewing finished with 32 points and 11 rebounds, which was only the beginning of his legacy in the Big Apple.
What was your favorite Christmas game? I want to know. Hit me up at thesportsriot@yahoo.com and fill me in. Also remember to follow us on Twitter @TheSportsRiot. Feliz Navidad…
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