Right up there with the NBA Playoffs and All-Star Weekend are the league’s Christmas Day games, where most teams are off, and the most exciting rivalries take place on a day cherished worldwide. The teams usually featured are the Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks, Boston Celtics, and now the Oklahoma City Thunder, with their recent rise in success.
The LA Clippers were counted in as locked picks to play on Christmas, typically against the Lakers due to their rivalry, but for the last few seasons, the NBA has pressed the skip button. To a certain degree, from a league-wide perspective, this was understandable, as detrimental factors that inevitably affect the fans’ experience, such as injuries, were evident.
However, in the summer, the Clippers’ front office built the best foundation possible around their superstar duo to excite fans throughout the whole season, starting from opening night. Additions of John Collins, Brook Lopez, Chris Paul, and Bradley Beal should easily have LA performing on the 25th of December.
Yet, the league office overlooked the Clippers’ notable improvements entirely, as the Christmas schedule was released today, and LA did not make the list of suspenseful matchups the NBA community looks forward to.
The NBA snubbed the LA Clippers’ offseason elevation through the Christmas Day schedule release
If healthy, the LA Clippers are projected to be one of the best teams in the Western Conference, likely a top-four seed. This essentially means they will finish with one of the NBA’s top records, as the Eastern Conference is plagued by the injury bug, with multiple superstars expected to miss months of playing time.
Furthermore, on the league’s Christmas Day slate are the Cleveland Cavaliers versus the New York Knicks, the San Antonio Spurs versus the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Houston Rockets versus the Los Angeles Lakers, the Dallas Mavericks versus the Golden State Warriors, and the Minnesota Timberwolves versus the Denver Nuggets.
This is a day full of games that should not be skipped, but not incorporating the Clippers is shocking, especially with the rivalries they have with opponents like the Lakers and Nuggets.
The common theme among all the matchups selected is that they feature star players who are enjoyable to watch. The Clippers employ Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, Bradley Beal, and John Collins, three stars and an athletic dunker who finds joy in exposing defenders above the rim.
It would have been even more memorable, as next season is expected to be Chris Paul’s last, to invite the Clippers, but all was disregarded by the NBA, and they will realize their mistake if LA goes all the way.