LeBron, Curry, Tatum are among the stars to keep an eye on

Christmas brings out the NBA stars.

From Dolph Schayes to Bill Russell and Oscar Robertson to Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Steph Curry, the biggest names and best players were part of the league’s Christmas schedule.

This December 25th is the same.

Wednesday’s five games feature familiar All-Star faces: James, Durant, Curry, Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, as well as newcomers to the Christmas extravaganza: Victor Wembanyama and Anthony Edwards, both of whom are expected to be fixtures on the NBA calendar for December 25th.

Here are the top NBA players to watch for the 2024 Christmas Games:

(All games are on ESPN, ABC, Disney+ and ESPN+; all times Eastern)

San Antonio Spurs vs. New York Knicks, noon

Spurs striker Victor Wembanyama

The talented 7-footer Wembanyama is on his way to his first All-Star appearance and his first All-NBA selection. He averages 24.8 points, 9.9 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.1 steals and leads the league with 4.0 blocks.

Knicks guard Jalen Brunson

Brunson scored 38 points in a win over Milwaukee on Christmas last season – the most by a Knicks player since Bernard King set a Christmas record of 60 points in 1984.

Knicks forward center Karl-Anthony Towns

A New Jersey native, Towns will have the chance to play near family and friends in his first season with the Knicks. He is averaging 24.7 points, a league-best 13.9 rebounds and a career-high, and is shooting 53.7% from the field and 45.6% on 3-pointers. He’s second in double-doubles with 25 and looks like an All-Star.

Minnesota Timberwolves at Dallas Mavericks, 2:30 p.m

Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards

Edwards, who made his first All-NBA team last season and won a gold medal with Team USA at the 2024 Paris Olympics, will make his Christmas debut. He is having another strong season: 25.3 points, 5.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.4 steals per game while shooting 44.4% from the field. As one of the league’s young faces, the 23-year-old Edwards will play more games on December 25th.

Mavericks guard Luka Dončić

Dončić’s scoring chances on Christmas Day: 27 in 2020, 32 in 2022 and 50 (plus 15 assists) in 2023, making him just one of four players to have scored at least 50 goals on Christmas. What gift will the All-NBA player, who is averaging 28.8 points, 8.5 rebounds, 8.1 assists and 2.0 steals this season, give his fans?

Mavericks guard Kyrie Irving

This is Irving’s seventh Christmas game and he has scored at least 25 points, including 37 pints in 2020 and 40 in 2018. Irving, by the way, is having an All-Star year: 23.4 points, 5.2 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.2 steals. He shoots 48.9% from the field, 45.1% on three-pointers and 88.6% on free throws.

Philadelphia 76ers vs. Boston Celtics, 5 p.m

Celtics forward Jayson Tatum

Tatum is only 26 years old and is preparing for his eighth Christmas game. Tatum is an important part of the Celtics machine and one of the best players in the league – an MVP candidate who averages 28.8 points, 9.3 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.2 steals.

Celtics guard-forward Jaylen Brown

Like his friend and teammate Tatum, Brown has appeared in a Christmas game in every season of his career since 2016. The 2024 NBA Finals MVP is 5-3 in December 25 games. This season he is averaging 23.9 points, 6.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists.

76ers guard Tyrese Maxey

Maxey struggled in his first Christmas game last season (4-for-20 from the field, 1-for-8-for-3), but made the 2024 All-Star team in an outstanding season. Maxey enters Monday’s game against San Antonio with a great performance in the game: 32 points, 10 rebounds, eight assists and three steals.

76ers center Joel Embiid

Embiid, who has had a difficult season due to injuries and exited in the second quarter on Monday, is 3-1 heading into Christmas and has scored at least 30 points in three games, including 35 in a win over New York in 2022.

Los Angeles Lakers vs. Golden State Warriors, 8 p.m

Lakers forward LeBron James

Talk about the games on Christmas Day. He’s as omnipresent as Santa Claus this time of year. This will be James’ 19th game on December 25th and his 18th consecutive Christmas appearance. No one played more Christmas games or scored more points (476) that day than James. With a win he can break the tie with Dwyane Wade, who is the all-time leader in Christmas wins with 11 wins.

Lakers forward Anthony Davis

In last season’s Christmas loss to Boston, Davis scored 40 points and collected 13 rebounds. This season, Davis is putting together another All-NBA season with 26.6 points, 11.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.2 blocks and 1.3 steals per game while shooting 52.3% from the field .

The Warriors guard Steph Curry

Oddly enough, Curry has only scored more than 20 points once in his 10 Christmas games, and in 2021 he scored 33 points.

Denver Nuggets vs. Phoenix Suns, 10:30 p.m

Nuggets center Nikola Jokic

The Nuggets are on a two-game Christmas winning streak, and Jokić recorded a triple-double (41 points, 15 assists, 15 rebounds) and a near-triple-double (26 points, 14 rebounds) in an overtime win over Phoenix in 2022 ). eight assists) in a win over Golden State in 2023. Jokić and teammate Russell Westbrook are two of nine players to record a triple-double on Christmas.

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LeBron, Curry, Tatum are among the stars to keep an eye on

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