KSR's 2022 BBNBA Christmas Day Preview

It’s nearly that time of the year once again — another Christmas Day filled with nonstop basketball action. Beginning on Sunday afternoon, the NBA will roll out a five-game hoops schedule that goes throughout the entire day.

Of the five contests, three of them will feature at least one former Kentucky Wildcat on the hardwood. Admittedly, some injuries to a couple of BBNBA stars will hamper the mood a bit, but there will still be plenty of Big Blue connections to make it worth your while.

Let’s go ahead and dive right into KSR’s 2023 BBNBA Christmas Day preview.

It's the most wonderful time of the year 🏀🎄 pic.twitter.com/U9C3GgjhfM

— ESPN (@espn) December 24, 2022

12:00 EST (ABC/ESPN) | 76ers @ Knicks

Bad news, folks. Tyrese Maxey has already been officially ruled out for the Philadelphia 76ers’ Christmas Day contest. The third-year guard, who received the November NBA Cares Community Assist Award on Friday, has been dealing with a left foot fracture that has sidelined him for over a month now. There was hope he might return in time for Christmas, but that is no longer the case.

This year has been Maxey’s official coming-out party. While he’s only played the first 15 games of the season for Philly so far after suffering the injury in mid-November, Maxey was on pace for a potential All-Star bid prior to that. The 22-year-old was averaging 22.9 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game for the 76ers on a shooting split of 46.2/42.2/73.8 before going down.

But don’t fret, Kentucky basketball fanatics, this matchup still has something for you. The New York Knicks trot out a pair of former Wildcats: Julius Randle and Immanuel Quickley, who are both having all-around impressive seasons. Randle is playing his best basketball of the season as of late while Quickley has settled in perfectly as New York’s sixth man.

The Knicks will host Philly riding a two-game losing streak, but that comes on the heels of an eight-game win streak. Both these teams are neck-and-neck in the Eastern Conference standings, with the Sixers at 19-12 and New York at 18-15.

2:30 EST (ABC/ESPN) | Lakers @ Mavericks

An untimely injury to Anthony Davis makes this matchup a tad less interesting, but watching LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers go up against Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks is always must-watch television. Davis was recently ruled “out indefinitely” after suffering a right foot injury last week. There is a belief he could return within the next couple of weeks, but there is a zero percent chance he makes that comeback on Sunday.

That doesn’t mean there isn’t a Kentucky connection for you to pay attention to, though. Lakers forward Wenyen Gabriel is back on the court after a shoulder injury sidelined him for seven games. Gabriel has played the last three contests for the Lakers, most recently putting up 13 points and seven rebounds on a perfect 5-5 shooting in just 16 minutes on Friday night. With Davis on the bench, Gabriel will soak up some of those extra frontcourt minutes.

5:00 EST (ABC/ESPN) | Bucks @ Celtics

Our next two Christmas Day games do not feature any former Wildcats, but I’ll most certainly be watching them anyways — and you should too. The afternoon matinee between the Milwaukee Bucks (22-10) and Boston Celtics (23-10) might be the most exciting matchup of the five-game slate. Only a half-game separates these two franchises from holding the top overall record in the entire NBA.

Jayson Tatum (BOS) and Giannis Antetokounmpo (MIL) are bonafide superstars in this league complemented by incredible supporting casts. This could very well be a preview of the Eastern Conference Finals matchup. Strap in for this one, folks.

8:00 EST (ABC/ESPN) | Grizzlies @ Warriors

Next up is arguably the NBA’s most exciting player to watch, Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies. The former Murray State Racer has Memphis (20-11) playing like an NBA Finals contender right now as he works perfectly alongside the likes of Jaren Jackson Jr. (a true Defensive Player of the Year candidate) and Desmond Bane (one of the league’s top overall outside shooters). The Grizzlies came into the season riding high off unexpected postseason success a year before, and haven’t skipped a beat so far in 2022-23.

Morant and his Grizz squad will take on the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco, although Steph Curry isn’t expected to suit up for the defending champions. The Warriors franchise player has been ruled out for another two weeks as he continues to recover from a shoulder injury. But if you like highlights, Morant is likely to pull off at least a half-dozen every game.

10:30 EST (ABC/ESPN) | Suns @ Nuggets

In the Christmas Day nightcap, we’ll hopefully be treated to a battle in the backcourt between two former sharpshooting ‘Cats. Devin Booker and his Phoenix Suns take on Jamal Murray and his Denver Nuggets in the final game of the day.

The only issue us BBNBA fans might run into that could spoil this head-to-head showdown is, unfortunately, injuries. Booker has sat out three straight games (and five of the last seven) for the Suns with a minor hamstring issue. With that in mind, remember that he still poured in 58 points just seven days ago against the New Orleans Pelicans. If Booker is cleared to play, he’s viable to pop off for a big night, especially if he’s playing on the Christmas Day stage.

When Phoenix head coach Monty Williams was asked about Booker’s status for Christmas, he was noncommittal, saying he didn’t “want to speculate”.

Murray, meanwhile, is more likely to play between himself and Booker, although it’s not set in stone. Murray sat out Tuesday’s game for Denver as he deals with knee soreness that is a result of him taking off all of last season to recover from an ACL injury. He was back in action on Friday night though, dropping 25 points, eight rebounds, and 12 assists in a win over the Portland Trail Blazers, so that’s what we’ll be hoping for again on Sunday.

If Booker and Murray are both good to roll, you’re gonna want to make sure you watch this game. Booker is a borderline MVP candidate for the 19-14 Suns, averaging 28 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 5.8 assists per game on a shooting split of 47.7/37.0/85.0. Murray has been terrific as of late for the 20-11 Nuggets as he continues to ramp up back to pre-injury strength. The 25-year-old point guard is averaging 17.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 5.7 assists per outing on a shooting split of 44.1/34.8/75.9 this season.