Thunder will soon return to Christmas Day rotation
Thunder basketball, not so long ago, was a Christmas Day fixture.
The Thunder played on Christmas, the marquee day on the NBA’s regularseason calendar, in every year from 2010-18, going 6-3 in those games. That’s nine Christmas Day games in the Thunder’s 16 years of existence.
But this Christmas, for the fifth straight season, the Thunder is not included in the five-game Dec. 25 slate: Bucks at Knicks, Warriors at Nuggets, Celtics at Lakers, 76ers at Heat and Mavericks at Suns.
Thunder players and personnel should soak up having the holiday off, though, because Christmas basketball is going to be back in OKC soon enough. The league loves to showcase its best teams and brightest stars on Christmas, and the 18-8 Thunder led by MVP candidate Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Rookie of the Year favorite Chet Holmgren checks both boxes.
The league’s Christmas Day tradition dates back to 1947, when the Baltimore Bullets beat the Chicago Stags, the timeless Knicks of New York topped the Providence Steamrollers and the Washington Capitols blew out the St. Louis Bombers.
Since 2010, including this season, only the Lakers (14), Warriors (13), Celtics (11) and Knicks (11) have played more Christmas Day games than the Thunder (nine).
The Lakers, Celtics and Knicks are iconic franchises in mega markets. The Warriors, of course, built a dynasty. The Thunder is the outlier, but OKC’s place on the list speaks to the team’s consistent success and its revolving door of stars throughout the 2010s.
Just behind the Thunder are the Heat (8), Clippers (8) and Bulls (7) — all big-market teams. The closest small-market squads to the Thunder in terms of Christmas Day
appearances are the Bucks and Nuggets with six. The Rockets also have six.
The Lakers and Knicks have been Christmas Day mainstays regardless of their places in the standings, but when a non-glamour-market team is featured on Christmas, it signifies their status as a contender.
The Thunder is way ahead of schedule, and neither the league office nor the networks saw this coming, that OKC would be a top-three team in the West with a rising Big Three in SGA, Holmgren and Jalen Williams.
But depending on how this season finishes, don’t be surprised next year if the Thunder’s tradition of Christmas basketball returns.
Thunder history on Christmas Day
2010: Thunder 114, Nuggets 106 in OKC. Kevin Durant scored 44 points, which is still tied for the ninth-most points on Christmas Day. Durant is the fifth all-time leading scorer on Christmas behind LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Oscar Robertson and Dwyane Wade.
2011: Thunder 97, Magic 89 in OKC. Durant led the Thunder with 30 points. James Harden had 19 points, six rebounds and three assists off the bench.
2012: Heat 103, Thunder 97 in Miami. An NBA Finals rematch from six months before. Durant had 33. LeBron James led the Heat with 29 points, nine assists and eight rebounds.
2013: Thunder 123, Knicks 94 in New York. Russell Westbrook had a 14point, 13-rebound and 10-assist tripledouble in the blowout win.
2014: Thunder 114, Spurs 106 in San Antonio. Westbrook had 34 points and Steven Adams had 16 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks.
2015: Bulls 105, Thunder 96 in OKC. Durant and Westbrook combined for 55 of the Thunder’s points. Jimmy Butler and Pau Gasol led the Bulls.
2016: Thunder 112, Timberwolves 100 in OKC. Minnesota’s first time playing on Christmas. Westbrook had 31 points and 15 assists.
2017: Thunder 112, Rockets 107 in OKC. Westbrook, Paul George and Carmelo Anthony all scored 20+ points.
2018: Rockets 113, Thunder 109 in Houston. The Rockets are the only opponent the Thunder has played twice on Christmas, and the games came in backto-back seasons. Harden had 41 points for the Rockets and Clint Capela had 23 rebounds.