10 NBA things to watch for on Christmas Day

8. The ‘Funeral Game,’ Part Three?

The NBA is often at its best when it’s at its pettiest, as the Washington Wizards and Boston Celtics so eloquently displayed last season.

In late January, most of the Wizards players showed up to a game against Boston at the then-Verizon Center wearing all black, which point guard John Wall declared was for “a funeral.” (Washington won, 123-108.) The Celtics then returned the favor against Washington prior to Game 6 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, which was a potential closeout game. (The Wizards barely staved off elimination, 92-91, before losing in Game 7.)

With only four Celtics players returning from last season’s roster, it remains to be seen whether the hostility between the two franchises lingers. Jae Crowder, one of the chief antagonists in the rivalry, now plays for the Cleveland Cavaliers, although constant pest Marcus Smart remains. The battle between John Wall and Kyrie Irving promises to be fierce as well.

Even though this new-look Celtics team shouldn’t have as much bad blood with the Wizards, when has that ever stopped Wall and Bradley Beal from conjuring beef out of thin air before? They’ll see Boston as one of their top roadblocks to the Finals, which should have them running low on Christmas spirit as they head up to Beantown.

Next: 7. Kyrie Irving vs. John Wall