Lakers record, statistics, and other history on Christmas Day

The NBA has played on Christmas Day since 1947, just one year after its inception, and in that time, the Los Angeles Lakers have been an integral part of the league's holiday festivities. Only the New York Knicks have played more on December 25th than the Lakers, but even though New York has played 55 games to L.A.'s 50, the Lakers have the most Christmas wins with 24.

The NBA always saves some of its best matchups for Christmas Day, and this year is no different. A very merry quintupleheader awaits, with Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs taking on Jalen Brunson and the Knicks, Anthony Edwards and the Wolves facing Luka Doncic and the Mavs, Joel Embiid and the Sixers battling Jayson Tatum and the Celtics, LeBron James and the Lakers renewing their rivalry with Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors and last but not least, Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets visiting Kevin Durant and the Phoenix Suns.

Why Christmas Day games are special for the Lakers

Though the NFL is horning in on the action this year, Christmas Day has traditionally been a time for NBA basketball. The top players and teams have always used these games as one of the premier showcases for the league, and for many fans, the league calendar really kicks into high gear from this point forward.

As one of the preeminent franchises in the NBA in terms of both winning history and national appeal, the Lakers are an easy choice for these prestigious games. There's rarely been a time throughout league history when the Lakers didn't have one or two of the biggest stars in the game, from George Mikan to Elgin Baylor and Jerry West, Kareem and Magic to Shaq and Kobe, and now to LeBron and Anthony Davis.

Winning hasn't come as easily for the Lakers this year as it has in seasons past, but they've managed to put together a respectable 16-13 record through 29 games, though Monday night's loss to the Pistons ended their three-game winning streak. Having the opportunity to face the Warriors on Christmas Day presents a real chance to get back on the winning track against a team they figure to be battling all season for playoff position.

Lakers record on Christmas Day

As you may have gathered with a bit of simple math from above, the Lakers are 24-26 in 50 previous Christmas Day games. They won four straight to begin their Christmas history way back in 1949, and all in all went 7-4 while they were still located in Minneapolis.

Recently, the Lakers have been on the naughty list, as they've lost eight of their last 11, including their last three. Oddly enough, they scored 115 points in each of those three losses.

The Lakers' four-game Christmas winning streak from 1949-52 is their longest ever, and their worst stretch was five straight losses from 2002-06.

Memorable Christmas Day games for the Lakers

The Lakers have played some memorable games on Christmas Day. Here are a few:

• Elgin Baylor went shot for shot with Oscar Robertson in an unforgettable matchup between the Lakers and the Cincinnati Royals in 1961. Each future Hall-of-Famer poured in 40 points, but the Lakers went on to win 141-127.
• Jerry West scored what at the time was the second-most points in a Christmas Day game in 1963 when he dropped 47 on the Knicks in Madison Square Garden in a 134-126 Lakers win.
• Fast forward to 2008, when Lakers head coach Phil Jackson got his 1,000th win with a 92-83 win over the Boston Celtics. Kobe Bryant led the way with 27 points as he helped L.A. get revenge for their previous year's NBA Finals loss, and this game also snapped Boston's 19-game winning streak. The Lakers went on to finish with an NBA-best 65-17 record and beat the Orlando Magic for the NBA title, while the Celtics finished with 62 wins and the 2-seed in the East, but lost to the 3-seeded Magic in the Eastern Conference semis.
• The 2011 season began on Christmas Day due to the lockout. In the opener, Kobe's 28 points weren't enough as the Lakers lost to Derrick Rose and the Chicago Bulls 88-87.

Top performances by the Lakers on Christmas Day

• The Lakers single-game record for points on Christmas Day came way back in that 1961 game over the Royals when they scored 142.
• Their lowest point total was 78 in an 88-78 loss to the Baltimore Bullets, though their longest stretch of offensive futility occurred in a three-year stretch from 2009-11 in which they failed to crack 87 points.
• Kareem Abdul-Jabbar recorded one of the best Christmas games in Lakers history when he scored 35 points, grabbed 17 rebounds and dished out nine assists as he led the team to a 111-96 win over the Seattle SuperSonics.

Lakers who have shined on Christmas

• Four players who spent time with the Lakers are in the top-10 in total scoring on Christmas Day. Those four are LeBron James (1st with 476 points), Kobe Bryant (2nd with 395 points), Shaquille O'Neal (7th with 272 points) and Russell Westbrook (8th with 271 points).
• Jerry West only got to play on Christmas six times in his career, but he still holds the Lakers record for highest scoring average with 32.2 points per Christmas Day game.
• Not only did Phil Jackson win his 1,000th career game on Christmas, he also is tied with the late Dr. Jack Ramsay for the most wins on Christmas Day with 11. Four of those wins came with the Lakers.

Who has been the Lakers' Scrooge on Christmas Day?

• No team has managed to beat the Lakers more than twice on Christmas, with one notable exception. The Miami Heat have been Ebenezer Scrooge, the Grinch and Krampus all rolled into one, as they're undefeated in five Yuletide showdowns with L.A.
• Ironically, one of those losses was handed to the Lakers by LeBron in 2010, who by that time had taken his talents to South Beach. The Heat also won after Lebron returned to Cleveland in 2014, while the first three matchups took place in three consecutive years from 2004-06, which not coincidentally happened to be right after the Shaq and Kobe feud that resulted in Shaq being traded to the Heat. David Stern knew what he was doing.

What's next for the Lakers on Christmas Day

• Wednesday's trip to Golden State will mark the third time the Lakers and Warriors have met on Christmas. The Lakers are 2-0 in that matchup, with the last win occurring in 2018.
• Going forward, the Lakers will certainly continue to play on Christmas as long as LeBron remains on the team. Even after King James eventually retires, the Lakers brand will endure. It will only be a matter of time until L.A. is able to attract another star, and with 10 slots to fill each year, expect the Lakers to be part of the NBA's festivities more often than not.
• This will be the fourth time that LeBron and Steph Curry have met on Christmas, and if both players continue to play, it probably won't be the last. Other compelling matchups for the Lakers include the Celtics and Knicks for obvious, big-market reasons; the Nuggets, who have enjoyed the one-sided recent nature of this rivalry; and the Suns, whom the Lakers have played six times, more than any other team.