Getty Julius Randle of the New York Knicks.
The New York Knicks will be facing off against the Philadelphia 76ers on Christmas, and there’s been a very mixed reaction to that news.
Despite not making the playoffs last season, or coming any close really, the Knicks are still going to be one of the headliners playing on Christmas for the NBA’s slate of games.
Signing Jalen Brunson will certainly help the team become more relevant, as would landing Donovan Mitchell, but that hasn’t stopped fans from lashing out at the NBA after the announcement came in.
Christmas in NY
Sources: NBA’s 2022 Christmas Day schedule:
Bucks at Celtics
76ers at Knicks
Suns at Nuggets
Lakers at Mavericks
Grizzlies at Warriors
The Athletic’s Shams Charania revealed the slate of games on Christmas day, and every team on the list is a playoff team from last season with the exception of the Knicks and Lakers. With the Lakers, they have the star power of LeBron James, Russell Westbrook and Anthony Davis to help make them make their case for playing on Christmas.
- Bucks at Celtics
- Sixers at Knicks
- Suns at Nuggets
- Lakers at Mavericks
- Grizzlies at Warriors
Notably absent from the schedule are the Brooklyn Nets, and a lot of that might be due to the uncertainty surrounding their stars Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving.
While New York is a massive basketball market, it seems like fans are fed up with seeing them play on Christmas, and they voiced their displeasure on Twitter.
@ShamsCharania The NBA forcing the Knicks on us on Christmas Day when there’s always better, more exciting teams. A tradition like no other.
No one ever wants to watch the Knicks on Christmas and if you’re going to insist to continue to have them there AT LEAST make it noon before I care about the games plz
WHY do the Knicks keep getting high valued tv time?! Christmas?!?🙄
No matter how trash the Lakers and Knicks are they’ll always get a Christmas Day game
For what it’s worth, this year’s Knicks squad should be an improvement over last season thanks to the team being healthy again and the additions of Brunson and Isaiah Hartenstein. Adding Mitchell in with that group could turn them into a solid playoff team, and then the Christmas game would make a lot more sense.
Unsurprisingly, it seems like the players are excited to play on Christmas, and that goes for the Sixers as well.
“Christmas in the garden!” wrote James Harden.
Christmas in the garden!
With that said, there is one player who seems to be upset about the schedule, and that’s Trae Young. While he didn’t say what he was talking about, a cryptic tweet posted on the day the schedule was released seems to take aim at the NBA for excluding the Atlanta Hawks.
Knicks Villain Unhappy
👎🗑😂😂😂😂
Young, a player who has become an enemy among Knicks fans due to the Knicks-Hawks matchup in the playoffs two seasons ago, tweeted out a thumbs down emoji along with a trash can.
Fans quickly deduced he must be talking about the Christmas schedule, and he might have a point. The Hawks, who snuck into the playoffs last season as the 8th seed, did make a trade to acquire Dejounte Murray and that will likely make them a better team this season.
Considering every other team playing on Christmas made the playoffs, it does seem a bit odd the Knicks made it on, but Young quickly got over the snub.
“We move,” he tweeted.
We Move😎
After the playoff matchup, the Knicks and Hawks looked poised to become a rivalry, but after the Knicks struggled last season, it seemed like those dreams were put on hold for at least another season.
If the Knicks are able to get it together this season, both teams appear to have a similar trajectory and could meet each other in the playoffs quite often.
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