Christmas Day is usually a time for family and basketball, but the NFL is presenting a new challenge for the NBA this holiday season.
After a doubleheader of NFL games on Christmas last year, the league added one more matchup at night to kick off Week 17. All three NFL matchups are between divisional opponents. Meanwhile, the NBA is set to feature its regular slate of five games (all on ABC/ESPN) for the 18th straight year.
This eight-game Christmas spread can be a lot to take in, so we put together an all-encompassing guide for Thursday. Our reporters and analysts from both sports broke down every matchup, including the biggest storylines, key stats, bold predictions, fantasy X factors and betting nuggets (odds via DraftKings Sportsbook). Plus, we used ESPN’s Football and Basketball Power Index to go inside the numbers with game projections. For the NFL games, we also included ramifications for the playoffs, which begin in just two weeks.
Let’s get to all eight contests, starting and ending on the hardwood. (Games are listed in chronological order by start time.)
Jump to an NBA matchup: CLE-NYK | SA-OKC | DAL-GS HOU-LAL | MIN-DEN
Jump to an NFL matchup: DAL-WSH | DET-MIN | DEN-KC
Noon ET | ESPN/ABC | NYK -5.5 (237.5 O/U)
Biggest storylines to watch: The league probably thought this would be a preview of the Eastern Conference finals when the schedule came out, but the Cavaliers have sputtered and are now without Evan Mobley due to a calf strain. The Knicks — especially since coach Mike Brown has gone back to last season’s starting five — represent everything the Cavs want to be: tough.
And the Knicks are more than finding their stride on offense, being second in efficiency. Reigning Player of the Week Jalen Brunson has been on a tear, averaging 32.3 points and 6.8 assists in his past eight games entering Tuesday night on 51/41/83 splits — a sharp contrast to the season Darius Garland is having, dealing with turf toe that was supposed to be surgically repaired during the offseason.
The Cavaliers can’t get off the mat until Garland finds himself; otherwise, it’ll be Donovan Mitchell standing alone against the Knicks. — Vincent Goodwill
Stat to know: A month ago, the Cavaliers and Knicks were next to each other in the standings, with 11-6 and 9-6 records, respectively. But Cleveland has lost as many games since Nov. 24 (eight) as New York has all season, as the NBA Cup champions are 12-3 during the Cavaliers’ recent extended swoon. — Zach Kram
Cavaliers | Knicks
Fantasy nugget: The Cavaliers look dramatically different this season. After ranking in the top 10 in both offensive and defensive rating a year ago, they are 10th offensively and 16th defensively. They are also shooting just 34.6% from 3, down from 38.3%. Garland’s shooting struggles and Mobley’s injury absence have only added to the decline. Mitchell has been the exception — he is averaging career highs in points per game (30.7), 3-pointers made (4.1) and usage rate (32.3). — Eric Moody
Best bet: Brunson over 29.5 points (-111). Before sitting Tuesday’s game for ankle maintenance, Brunson was on a heater. He was averaging 33.1 PPG in his previous seven games, scoring 30 or more five times and 40 or more twice. He has a penchant for having a big game on the big stage, and the Christmas Day game in Madison Square Garden is as big as it gets in the regular season. He’s also facing a friendly Cavaliers perimeter defense that ranks 20th in points allowed to opposing point guards. — Andre’ Snellings
Matchup must-reads: Five wild-card players who could impact the wide-open East race … Knicks coach Mike Brown counts Bernie Bickerstaff as his biggest mentor
1 p.m. ET | Netflix | DAL -7 (50.5 O/U)
What we’re hearing on the Cowboys: Out of the playoffs, the Cowboys’ motivation comes down to pride, a non-losing record and one more thing as they end the season against the Commanders and Giants. «I’m fueled by the fact that we get to play an NFC East opponent this week and then next week,» coach Brian Schottenheimer said. «We want to win. And to sustain some success and we have a chance to potentially go 5-1 in the division. I mean this is the NFC East.» Quarterback Dak Prescott is a combined 26-4 versus both teams in his career. — Todd Archer
What we’re hearing on the Commanders: There’s not much to salvage from this wreckage of a season, and the Commanders can’t even play spoiler. But they do need to stop the bleeding versus Dallas. The Cowboys have won seven of the past nine games in this rivalry, including the past two at Northwest Stadium. One thing that would help is limiting turnovers. Washington is minus-12 in turnover margin and was minus-2 in a 44-22 loss to Dallas in Week 6. And in their past nine games versus the Cowboys, the Commanders are minus-13 in turnover differential. — John Keim
Stat to know: The Commanders have allowed an average of 33.6 points per game in 14 matchups against Prescott as the starting QB. That’s the most points allowed by any team versus another with an active quarterback. — ESPN Research
Bold prediction: Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson will record at least seven receptions for the first time since Oct. 19, the last time these two teams played. Other than that specific bit of history, this is mostly a gut feeling. Ferguson was such a huge part of the offense early in the season but has been quieter since. — Seth Walder
