Another year, another big game on Christmas Day for the Los Angeles Lakers.
Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium has revealed all five holiday pairings for the 2024-25 season. Los Angeles will face the Golden State Warriors, a longtime opponent the Lakers recently defeated in the 2023 Western Conference Semifinals. The Warriors will host.
20-time LA All-Star LeBron James and nine-time LA All-Star Davis will face 10-time Golden State All-Star point guard Stephen Curry, their current counterpart on Team USA, at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris this summer. The U.S. men’s team will play France on Saturday for a chance to win its fifth consecutive Olympic medal.
The Lakers and Warriors’ offseasons have so far been a study in contrasts.
Aside from hiring JJ Redick to replace Darvin Ham, the Lakers made few major moves. Los Angeles let go of free agents Taurean Prince and Spencer Dinwiddie and signed former Tennessee Volunteers All-American shooting guard Dalton Knecht and former USC Trojans point guard Bronny James, the eldest son of LeBron James.
The Warriors, however, have seen some major personnel changes, culminating in five-time All-Star swingman Klay Thompson joining the Dallas Mavericks on a three-year, $50 million contract as part of a six-team sign-and-trade. 12-time All-Star point guard Chris Paul, who was a backup in his only year with Golden State, is expected to join the San Antonio Spurs, where he will play alongside Team France center Victor Wembanyama, who is already an All-Defensive center after just one season.
Golden State responded to the departures of Thompson and Paul by bringing in younger players. The team signed former Philadelphia 76ers shooting guard De’Anthony Melton to a one-year, $12.8 million deal. The Warriors also acquired the rights to former Minnesota Timberwolves combo forward Kyle Anderson and Melton’s Sixers teammate Buddy Hield. Last season, Golden State finished 46-36 and finished 10th in the Western Conference. They lost to the Sacramento Kings in their first play-in tournament game.
According to Charania, the New York Knicks will host Wembanyama and Paul’s Spurs, the Mavericks will host the Timberwolves, Philadelphia will play the Boston Celtics on their home turf, and the newly formed Phoenix Suns will host the Denver Nuggets. Denver lost a popular ex-Laker, shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, and acquired a hated ex-Laker, Russell Westbrook, as a free agent.
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