Veteran forward LeBron James would rather be at home on Christmas than with his Los Angeles Lakers teammates when they face the Houston Rockets this Holiday season. That sentiment is perfectly understandable, given how much of a family man James is and has always been.
Lakers fans, though, are also justified in being concerned about James, who turns 41 next week and seemingly no longer prioritizes basketball as much as he did in his younger years.
“I’d much rather be at home with my family,” James said on Saturday, via Bleacher Report. “But I mean, it’s the game. It’s the game that I love, 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: Christmas Day Leader
James, who will play his record 20th Christmas Day game on Thursday, has been featured in the NBA’s Holiday season broadcasts nearly every year since his rookie season, except 2004, 2005 and 2006. That was a three-year window when the NBA had only one or two Christmas Day games, with the slots going strictly to the Kobe Bryant-led Lakers and Shaquille O’Neal-led Heat.
Through his 19 previous Christmas Day games, James holds the league record for most victories (11-8 record), points (507), made threes (31) and field goals made (180). He ranks second all-time in assists (137) and steals (28).
In recent years, some of his best Christmas Day moments have come against the Stephen Curry-led Golden State Warriors, including his first Christmas Day game as a Laker in 2018 when he led the Purple & Gold past the then-reigning NBA champions. There was also the incredible game in 2016 when James and Kyrie Irving combined for 56 points to take down Kevin Durant’s Warriors in a 109-108 thriller.
Lakers Hoping to Get Healthy for XMas
Entering Tuesday’s contest against the Phoenix Suns, the Lakers have five players — Luka Doncic (left leg contusion), Rui Hachimura (groin), Austin Reaves (calf strain), Deandre Ayton (elbow) and Gabe Vincent (back) — on the injury list. While Hachimura and Ayton are expected to return imminently, there’s still no word on how long Doncic will be out of action after suffering his injury on Sunday.
As for Reaves, the Lakers’ second-leading scorer was seen in shootaround this weekend looking pretty healthy, suggesting that his return could be around the corner. The Lakers desperately need Reaves back, especially after news of Doncic’s injury.
Besides the Lakers versus Rockets clash, the 2025 NBA Christmas Day slate of games will include the New York Knicks versus Cleveland Cavaliers, Oklahoma City Thunder versus San Antonio Spurs (Chet vs Wemby alert!), Golden State Warriors versus Dallas Mavericks and Denver Nuggets versus Minnesota Timberwolves.
Many believe an NBA season doesn’t truly start until Christmas Day. Going by that sentiment, LeBron James’ Lakers begin their season against the Rockets on Thursday.
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