Whiskey Basketball Day is your new favorite holiday

We interview comedian Nate Fridson about the origins, traditions and future of Whiskey Basketball Day — your new favorite way to spend Dec. 25.

Nate Fridson is a writer, comedian and Pistons fan based out of New York where he co-hosts and produces Dark Spots; a quarterly stand-up comedy show where comedians perform their darkest, saddest and most traumatic (but still funny) jokes. Follow him on Twitter @natefridson.

Aaron Hertzog: Tell us about the origins of the holiday.

Nate Fridson: Whiskey Basketball Day dates all the way back to 2011. I had moved to New York from Detroit in September and by December did not yet have a fully furnished apartment.

I moved to New York with my now ex-girlfriend, whose family celebrated Christmas. I was raised Jewish and I did not feel a real pull to be back in Michigan with her family. Also, no one was willing to pay for my plane ticket and I did not have enough money to buy one.

So I decided to stay in New York on Christmas by myself. In past years whenever I had been invited to someone’s Christmas celebration — relatives of mine or otherwise — I’ve always found myself wanting to watch the basketball games on Christmas instead of whatever else was going on.

This was my opportunity to do just that, even if I didn’t have a couch yet. I went to the local liquor store, bought a fifth of whiskey, sat on my floor and watched five basketball games in a row.

AH: What makes whiskey the drink of choice to pair with a full day of basketball?

NF: For me, it was my favorite type of alcohol. I knew I wanted it to be liquor, as beer basketball day doesn’t seem right and also is insanely filling.

Wine basketball day? I mean, maybe if LeBron and Draymond are coming over but this year they’re both working that day.

I hesitate to say it’s heroic, but there is something romantic about finishing a bottle of something. Whiskey makes more sense to me than vodka in that sense; it sounds better syllable-wise and works with sitting on your floor, drunk.

AH: What are the holiday traditions (outside of drinking whiskey and watching basketball, of course)?

NF: The day starts whenever you wake up but you’re only encouraged to start drinking at the beginning of the first game, usually at noon. Depending on how the evening before goes, I’ve started with either a glass of whiskey straight up or some whiskey in my coffee.

The floor is a part of the tradition to me, as I think it is important to remember the first Whiskey Basketball Day and to see how far the day has come. However, sitting on the floor is not a requirement for the holiday. Whiskey Basketball Day started, in part, because I could not afford to be with people celebrating another holiday. So it’s important to be accepting of people who do not want to sit on the floor for an entire day.

The first Whiskey Basketball Day, I was alone the entire day. The second one, my friend Ari came over during the last game and saw how drunk I was and convinced me to go see a movie with him. From the third one through last year’s celebration, more and more people have come over for at least part of the holiday, utilizing different surfaces according to seating preference.

AH: Have you ever taken to the court yourself for the holiday? Or is there too much whiskey for that?

NF: I have not yet played in a game myself on Whiskey Basketball Day. The joy of the holiday itself is enough to keep me going. However, the holiday is young and who knows where the basketball — and more importantly the whiskey — will take us.

AH: Who is the Jesus of Whiskey Basketball Day? Who is the Santa Claus?

NF: Whiskey Basketball Day is a secular holiday so we tend to focus more on the joy of basketball and whiskey.

But for the purposes of this interview, Santa is the person who brings the presents so I guess that would be either Chino, the guy who owns and operates my local liquor store, or whoever schedules the basketball games.

Jesus would be, I don’t know, Dr. James Naismith? No, Naismith would be god in this analogy.

Jesus is the reason for the season so I guess the Jesus of this holiday would be the man who oversaw the ascension of basketball as the main sport broadcast on 12/25, former NBA commissioner David Stern. Like Jesus, he’s a Jew we haven’t heard from in a while.

AH: Is there a traditional feast for Whiskey Basketball Day?

NF: This being a drinking holiday, it’s important to lay a foundation and eat early. So, eat breakfast.

The first year I got hungry around the second or third game, walked to a deli and bought a sandwich. Then I continued drinking and forgot that I did that, so I went back and got another sandwich.

The next year I got Chinese food. In subsequent years, there’s been mac and cheese, Polish sausage, stews, chicken. The more people get involved, the more people bring their own food preferences to the celebrations.

AH: Which NBA match-up are you looking forward to most this year and why?

NF: Most years, it seems like one of the two New York teams plays in the first game. As both of those teams have for the most part been sub-par since the advent of the holiday, this is a great way to wake up and acclimate yourself to watching basketball.

This year, though, that first game is one of the more exciting first games I can remember. Sixers vs. Knicks, assuming Porzingis plays, should be very exciting.

Cavs vs. Warriors feels almost perfunctory at this point but there are worse things than watching basketball played well; particularly, Jeff Green.

This year’s slate looks exciting. Many of the expected title contenders — Boston, Houston and the aforementioned Cavs/Warriors — play and we even get to watch two young, exciting teams — Timberwolves and Lakers — in the finale. That should be a fun game, assuming Tom Thibodeau hasn’t run Karl-Anthony Towns into the ground by then.

AH: What would be your dream for the holiday: widespread recognition or keep it small and special?

NF: As long as it brings joy to people, I want the holiday to endure more than anything else. If that means it becomes bigger than it is, so be it. I have friends in Michigan, Illinois and Colorado who have taken to the holiday, so it’s already spreading throughout the country. Last year, one of my brothers came to New York to visit and this year my other brother and his wife are traveling to Brooklyn to share in the festivities.

AH: What is your favorite Whiskey Basketball Day memory?

NF: Unfortunately, it’s not a holiday that’s conducive to memories. It’s cool to look back now and see how it’s grown, from something fairly depressing and antisocial to now when people travel from out of state to celebrate.

The third year was the first year anyone joined me early for actual basketball viewing. My friends Brian and Andy came over from a nearby apartment to catch a few games and a few swigs. Last year was the most well-attended celebration, the first year we had a hard time fitting everyone in the living room, and that will always mean a lot to me.

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AH: Is Whiskey Basketball Day part of the so-called “war on Christmas?”

NF: I did not start this holiday to pick a fight with Christmas but if people view Whiskey Basketball Day as a threat then I think that shows we’re onto something. Most years I start the day with some whiskey in my coffee, so obviously I think Starbucks should give us our own cup. I think it comes down to the question of what’s more likely to endure: the celebration of the birth of the son of god and eventual messiah in the eyes of the Christian religion or drinking an entire bottle of whiskey and watching five basketball games?