LeBron James, Dak Prescott highlight a loaded slate of sports on Christmas – NBC News

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After having dipped its toes in the Christmas waters last season with two games, the NFL is wading deeper into the pool this year with three games Thursday. Combined with a whopping five NBA matchups, the sports slate is a gift of its own.
Here’s what you need to know about a loaded day on the sports calendar, which tips off at noon ET.
What was meant to be a marquee matchup has become a showdown between two teams on separate paths.
After a 2-3 start, the Knicks have gone 18-5, emerging as one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference. Under new head coach Mike Brown, New York has thrived offensively, averaging 121.7 points per 100 possessions, the second-best mark in the NBA.
The Cavaliers, on the other hand, have struggled. A year after it lost only 18 games, Cleveland is 16-14 this season, good for seventh place in the Eastern Conference. This is an opportunity for the Cavs to show they can still compete with the best, while a loss would draw only more skepticism about this team’s chances of being a contender.
The first football game of the day features two struggling NFC East foes. The Cowboys were eliminated from playoff contention last week, falling to 6-8-1 after a loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
The Commanders, meanwhile, are 4-11 and without star quarterback Jayden Daniels, who has been beset with injuries in his sophomore campaign. Third-string signal-caller Josh Johnson could start for Washington.
This is the good stuff, folks. The Thunder have a massive target on their backs after they started the season 24-1, putting them in position to challenge the 2016 Golden State Warriors for most wins in a season. Oklahoma City has lost two of its last four, however, including a matchup with these same Spurs in the NBA Cup semifinals.
San Antonio is led by Victor Wembanyama, the ascendant star who is threatening to take over the league himself. The best part about Wemby? He has made his distaste for the Thunder clear, not-so-subtly branding their style of basketball as unethical while clearly having a personal rivalry with fellow big man Chet Holmgren. Expect a highly competitive matchup between two young teams who already seem fed up with each other.
This is probably the best NFL game of the day. The Lions are desperate after they lost a bizarre game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, putting Detroit’s playoff hopes in grave danger. Per the NFL’s Next Gen Stats, the Lions have only a 7% chance of making the postseason, and that begins with trying to find a way to beat the Vikings, their divisional rival.
While Minnesota quarterback J.J. McCarthy will miss the game with a fracture in his right hand, the Vikings’ defense can pose problems for any offense.
This is a homecoming game for Klay Thompson, the four-time champion who is in his second season with the Mavericks after a storied career with the Warriors. Dallas enters the game on a bit of a rebound: After having started the season 5-15, the Mavs are 6-4 in their last 10. The return of Anthony Davis has helped Dallas have a stingy defense, while Cooper Flagg, the No. 1 pick in the 2025 draft, has begun to cook.
Golden State is a little desperate. The veteran team with title aspirations is only 15-15 and coming off a game in which forward Draymond Green got into a heated argument with head coach Steve Kerr. Stephen Curry knows how to put on a show, though.
This is another heavyweight NBA fight.
The Rockets are 17-9 and have been one of the best teams in basketball, as their 8.9 net rating is third best in the league. The Lakers, meanwhile, are 19-8 thanks to a high-powered offense that has covered up for a leaky defense.
This will be a clash of styles — Houston has actually been better than Los Angeles offensively, while also having the fourth-best defense — and a battle of stars. Between legends like Kevin Durant and LeBron James, international stars like Alperen Sengun and Luka Dončić and rising players such as Amen Thompson and Austin Reaves, this is the kind of game worth gathering the family around the television for.
This matchup lost its luster when Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes tore an ACL in a Dec. 14 loss to the Chargers, a defeat that eliminated Kansas City from playoff contention. To make matters worse for the Chiefs, backup quarterback Gardner Minshew also tore an ACL in the team’s last game. That means third-string QB Chris Oladokun will go up against the feared Broncos defense. This one could get ugly quickly.
A nightcap worth staying up for. The Timberwolves and the Nuggets have become rivals after they traded playoff series wins in 2023 and 2024, bringing an extra edge to their regular-season matchups.
Denver is one of the best teams in the NBA, having posted a 21-7 record through 28 games despite several injuries to key players. The Nuggets have the best offense in the league, led by do-it-all center Nikola Jokić, who is having another MVP-caliber campaign. Jokić is averaging a triple double, posting 28.9 points, 12.1 rebounds and 10.8 assists a night.
The Wolves, meanwhile, can fill it up themselves. Star guard Anthony Edwards is averaging 28.3 points, and he has a flair for the dramatic, like when he hit a game-clinching 3-pointer sandwiched between multiple defensive highlights in a recent win over the Thunder.
The high-powered offenses and the dislike between these two clubs should help keep you awake after a big holiday meal.
Rohan Nadkarni is a sports reporter for NBC News. 
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