Christmas Day has traditionally been a day on which the NBA stages marquee matchups on national television. For many years, it has seemed as if the Lakers playing on Christmas has been as much a Christmas tradition as opening presents, eating ham or volunteering to help the underprivileged.

LeBron James playing on the holiday has also become a basketball tradition. He has played in a record 17 games on Dec. 25, and this year, this number will go up to 18 when his Lakers visit Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors.

This will be the fourth time James has faced off against Curry on Christmas Day, and he knows this year's matchup is something to cherish now that the end of his career is just around the corner.

The last time the two future Hall of Famers played each other on Christmas was in 2018, when the Lakers won easily but lost James for over a month due to a groin injury. Of course, the two got well acquainted this summer when they led Team USA men's basketball to a gold medal at the Olympics in France.

Both teams come into this matchup looking to return to the excellent play they enjoyed early in the season. Los Angeles started 10-4, and although it has won four of its last six games, it fell 117-114 on Monday to a Detroit Pistons team that is inferior on paper. After winning 12 of their last 15 contests, the Warriors have lost 10 of their last 13 and are now half a game behind L.A. with a 15-13 record.

If the regular season ended today, both teams would face off against each other in the play-in tournament with the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference at stake. It was a scenario that occurred in 2021, with the Lakers prevailing in that play-in contest on a late 3-pointer from James.