The NBA released the full 2024-2025 schedule on Thursday, meaning fans now know exactly what games they’ll be able to watch on Christmas this year. To the surprise of no one, the Los Angeles Lakers are involved. The Lakers will travel to San Francisco to play the Golden State Warriors in the primetime game at 8 p.m. ET. For at least one person, that totally stinks.
That one person is LeBron James. We know it stinks for the NBA’s all-time leading scorer because he told us how much it stinks way back in 2015 as the Cleveland Cavaliers were getting ready to play on the road against the Golden State Warriors. Via ESPN:
“I won’t be with my family on Christmas, unfortunately. … They’re not even here [in Ohio] right now. They’re in L.A. right now, actually. So, no, we have no traditions. If I can get a home game on Christmas, then we’ll have a tradition.”
Unfortunately for LeBron, he is a Christmas tradition.
This will be his 19th Christmas playing NBA basketball. Between the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers, LeBron James’s teams have played on 17 consecutive Christmases. This will be the 18th straight year LeBron has been on television playing professional basketball on Christmas.
Here’s a chart to put it in perspective.
Year
LeBron’s Team
Opponent
Home or Away
Opened presents under the tree at home on Christmas morning?
2003
Cleveland Cavaliers
Orlando Magic
Away
NO
2007
Cleveland Cavaliers
Miami Heat
Home
Yes
2008
Cleveland Cavaliers
Washington Wizards
Home
Yes
2009
Cleveland Cavaliers
LA Lakers
Away
NO
2010
Miami Heat
LA Lakers
Away
NO
2011
Miami Heat
Dallas Mavericks
Away
NO
2012
Miami Heat
OKC Thunder
Home
Yes
2013
Miami Heat
LA Lakers
Away
NO
2014
Cleveland Cavaliers
Miami Heat
Away
Probably
2015
Cleveland Cavaliers
Golden State Warriors
Away
NO
2016
Cleveland Cavaliers
Golden State Warriors
Home
Yes
2017
Cleveland Cavaliers
Golden State Warriors
Away
NO
2018
LA Lakers
Golden State Warriors
Away
NO
2019
LA Lakers
LA Clippers
Home
Yes
2020
LA Lakers
Dallas Mavericks
Home
Yes
2021
LA Lakers
Brooklyn Nets
Home
Yes
2022
LA Lakers
Dallas Mavericks
Away
NO
2023
LA Lakers
Boston Celtics
Home
Yes
2024
LA Lakers
Golden State Warriors
Away
NO
This will be the 10th Christmas that LeBron wakes up in a hotel room. It’s his 11th Christmas away game, but in 2014 the Cavs visited Miami after he left the Heat and he has a home there. It’s also possible that he bought his first house in Los Angeles because the league kept sending him there over the holidays.
He’s played for the Lakers or against the Lakers six times on Christmas. This will be his 11th Christmas in California despite the fact that he spent the first 15 years of his career playing in Cleveland and Miami.
The good news this year is that he might get to spend his entire day with his oldest son since the Lakers drafted Bronny James in the second round this year. If Bronny is with the Lakers, it will likely be the first time he’ll get to spend his entire day with his dad since 2006 when he was two years old. If LeBron ends up playing the 2025-26 season and is scheduled for Christmas again, the Lakers would be smart to sign Bryce, Zhuri and Savannah to 10-day contracts. Considering his birthday is December 30th, it would be a nice gesture.
It’s basically been two decades since basketball fans spent the holidays without LeBron James. When he finally does retire, there will be a crown-shaped hole in not just the NBA’s schedule, but every sports fan’s holiday season.
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