Regardless of viewership numbers, the NBA should own Christmas Day and rethink their entire schedule moving forward

The NBA got a nice little Christmas gift this year with an 84% ratings boost compared to last season. The Lakers-Warriors game even became the league’s most-watched regular-season game in five years. Great, right? Except for one glaring fact: the NFL still crushed them in viewership.

NBA: Most-watched Christmas Day in five years. Viewership up 84% from 2023 with 5.25 million average viewers per game

The NBA says yesterday was its most-watched Christmas Day in five years.

• Viewership up 84% from 2023
• 5.25 million average viewers per game

The most-watched game of the day was the Lakers vs. Warriors at 7.76 million viewers. pic.twitter.com/BGn1EQhkDo

— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) December 26, 2024

Let’s be honest—basketball will never top football in America. The NFL is a juggernaut that steamrolls everything in its path. But this isn’t just about numbers. It’s about identity, tradition, and knowing your lane.

And surprisingly, I agree with LeBron James on this one: Christmas should be NBA Day.

NFL and NBA viewership numbers for their Christmas games:

NFL (Netflix):

• Chiefs-Steelers: 24.1M
• Ravens-Texans: 24.3M

NBA (ESPN & ABC):

• Knicks-Spurs: 4.9M
• Celtics-76ers: 5.1M
• TWolves-Mavs: 4.3M
• Lakers-Warriors: 7.7M
• Nuggets-Suns: 3.8M

I literally have zero clue why anyone would have thought that the NBA was going to come close to the NFL on any day of the week but as usual, there are way too many people on social media acting like this matters. I’m pretty sure we’re still calling those types of people “casuals” right?

The NFL is relentless. They’ve already locked down Thursdays, Sundays, and Mondays, and they sneak in Saturdays toward the end of the regular season.

Now they want Christmas too? Enough already.

The NFL Machine doesn’t need to be a year-round product, and their holiday incursion feels more like overreach than innovation. Plus, both NFL games were boring as shit while the NBA finally delivered a great product that was drenched in tradition.

Nobody’s saying football fans can’t enjoy a game or two on Christmas, but do we really need the NFL to dominate every holiday? The NBA’s Christmas tradition has been around for decades. It’s about marquee matchups, big moments, and a little drama under the tree.

Let basketball shine for one day without the NFL looming over it like a greedy overlord.

The numbers actually tell me that the NBA season, as currently constructed, is way too long.

I don’t understand why the NBA wants to drag their product through October and November every year? There’s too much load management, too many meaningless games, and not enough urgency. Fans know it, players know it, and it’s time the league acknowledges it too.

So, rip it all apart. Start the season on Christmas Day with blockbuster matchups across the league. Lakers-Warriors. Celtics-Sixers. Bucks-Suns. Make it a true launch event. Every game should matter from Day 1, creating a season that’s short, intense, and packed with meaningful basketball.

The current setup is stale. Players coast through the first few months, and fans tune out until after the All-Star break. A Christmas start would bring a sense of importance to every game, from opening tip-off to the playoffs.

Meanwhile, the NFL needs to chill. They’ve got more eyeballs than they know what to do with, yet they insist on creeping into every available time slot. The problem isn’t just that they’re everywhere—it’s how they’re everywhere.

Games are scattered across a million platforms, from cable to streaming services, making it an annoying inconvenience for fans. You’re flipping from Amazon Prime to Peacock to who-knows-what-else just to watch a game. It’s too much.

The NFL doesn’t need to be on every day of the week, and it doesn’t need to steal Christmas from the NBA. Stick to your core days, let basketball have its moment, and stop acting like the world can’t survive without football for 24 hours.

The NBA has a chance to do something special here. Christmas Day is already synonymous with basketball, so why not make it the official start of the season? Shorten the schedule, make every game count, and embrace the drama that comes with heightened stakes.

And as for the NFL? Take a breath. You’re already the king of American sports. Let the NBA have one day. Because if LeBron James is out here declaring Christmas as “our day,” I’m inclined to agree and I NEVER want to agree with LeBron James.

Let basketball fans enjoy their holiday tradition without football trying to muscle in. And while we’re at it, let’s fix the NBA season for good.

Start on Christmas. Shorten it. Make it matter.

Because at the end of the day, it’s not just about the ratings—it’s about giving fans a product that feels special, from start to finish.

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