10 NBA Christmas Day Storylines

We know the main reason we'll all be cemented to our couches on Christmas Day: The NBA is back!

Even if the layoff between the conclusion of the 2020 Finals and the start of this new season was historically short, it's still been a couple of basketball-free months. That's more than long enough to stoke excitement and foster hope that this year will be better than the last.

Added bonus: The league has, as per usual, stocked the Christmas slate with high-profile contenders, juicy matchups and various other persons of interest. If two teams have history, there's a good chance they're squaring off during present-opening and face-stuffing hours Friday.

Rivalries. Revenge. MVPs. Mysterious No. 2 draft picks.

We're getting all of it and more in a loaded Christmas slate.

Zion Williamson gave us a taste of his overwhelming physicality during the 2019 preseason, ripping the ball away from New York Knicks forward Kevin Knox II and tearing the rim halfway off the backboard with a fearsome flush.

Injuries delayed Williamson's regular-season debut, and though he was highly productive upon returning, the hurricane-force athleticism never got back to preseason levels. It feels fair to label Zion's rookie season a disappointment—relative to the sky-high expectations attached to the No. 1 pick.

The New Orleans Pelicans played just two preseason games this December. Williamson topped all scorers in both contests, totaling 57 points on 35 shots. Most importantly, he averaged over 33 minutes per game and looked noticeably trimmer than when we last saw him in the bubble. His 15-points on 7-of-9 shooting in New Orleans' season opener Wednesday offered further reason for optimism.

Questions remain.

Zion has looked quick off the dribble and had no trouble gliding around and through contact to finish at a high rate near the basket. That said, the vertical explosion he showed at Duke remains missing. Maybe that's because Williamson knows he's nimble enough to blow by defenders and strong enough to power through the ones that meet him in the air.

Or maybe it's because Williamson's otherworldly athleticism—truly unprecedented for a player with his bulk—has come back to earth after a series of injuries.

The Pelicans' defense is a question mark, Jrue Holiday is gone, and Stan Van Gundy introduces a different approach in what should be a pivotal season. None of that is more interesting or consequential than how Williamson performs.

Consider Christmas his high-profile debut do-over.

Maybe we should have led off with a Miami heat storyline for Friday's first game. Being defending Eastern Conference champs, they probably deserved first billing over Zion's second-season "re-debut."

Miami offers our first great test case for the predictive value of the bubble. The Heat hit a new gear down the stretch last season, led by a rejuvenated Goran Dragic, Jae Crowder's surprisingly hot shooting, Jimmy Butler's superstar turn (that one seems repeatable) and leaps from key young players.

Even if that exact same group had returned for the 2020-21 season, it would have been reasonable to question whether the Heat really did become a better team in the bubble and playoffs, or if they just caught a heater that won't be repeatable. Miami doesn't look exactly the same, though, with Crowder and Derrick Jones Jr. both leaving via free agency.

Moe Harkless and Avery Bradley will absorb most of the minutes vacated by Miami's departed forwards, undeniable downgrades who offer less in the way of volume shooting (Crowder) and elite point-of-attack defense in zone looks (Jones). The hope is that additional steps forward from Tyler Herro and Bam Adebayo will compensate for the losses on the forward line.

Much also depends on Butler's ability to stay healthy and sustain his All-NBA production following a real gasser of a playoff run and a short offseason. Few work harder than Butler, but he's 31 and has missed at least a dozen games every year but one since 2012-13.

The Heat belong on the short list of contenders for the East crown, but they'll have to prove organic growth can offset their offseason attrition and potential fatigue.

The Pelicans will offer Miami a frisky, athletic opponent. But if the Heat struggle to take care of business against a squad that can't realistically hope for more than the seventh seed in the West, that's a problem...if you're into overreacting after one game.

Have we ever known less about a top prospect than we do about Golden State Warriors rookie James Wiseman?

The No. 2 overall pick played a grand total of three collegiate games, the last one more than 13 months ago, and didn't suit up for any of the Warriors' three preseason tuneups. He showed promise with 19 points in his rookie debut against the Brooklyn Nets, but that blowout loss felt like an appetizer before the main course.

Reports about his intelligence and enthusiasm in practice are glowing, and the Golden State coaching staff will give him a starting role almost immediately. Though most who've seen him play have so far resisted the urge to anoint Wiseman as the second coming of David Robinson, the raw physical tools—7'1" with a 9'6" standing reach and the fluid running style of a rangy wing—make it hard to tamp down enthusiasm.

Until we see Wiseman get more game action against NBA talent, he still exists in the realm of the theoretical. Maybe he's got superstar potential, but nobody is in a position to be sure about that—or about anything when it comes to Wiseman.

On Christmas, we'll get to see the Warriors' most mysterious figure. Then, depending on what Wiseman looks like, we'll get a much clearer sense of the Warriors' short- and long-term outlook.

Not to pile on the pressure, but Wiseman is basically the factor that'll determine whether Golden State has a shot at another title before Curry's prime winds down.

OK, so Stephen Curry's and Giannis Antetokounmpo's contracts only add up to $429 million, but the MVP thing is accurate. 

The last two guys to win back-to-back MVPs will meet on Christmas, giving us about as much superstar clout as you can fit into a single game. 

Curry and Giannis haven't faced each other since Dec. 7, 2018, and plenty has changed since then. The Warriors lost Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson to major injuries, after which KD changed teams and Thompson went down for another full season. While the diminished Warriors will scrap and claw to stay in the playoff picture this year, Giannis' Bucks are in full championship-or-bust mode.

Milwaukee sacrificed depth and mortgaged its draft future to add Jrue Holiday to what's now arguably the best starting five in the league. Antetokounmpo is locked down on a new deal, which removes the biggest downside, his free-agency exit, of another disappointing season. But if the Bucks don't at least advance to the Finals this year, other significant changes will be on the table.

One MVP-led (former) superpower is trying to hang on, while the other is desperate to break through.

If that doesn't make for compelling viewing, what does?

Kevin Durant looks awfully close to top form, Kyrie Irving is cleansing bad vibes and the Brooklyn Nets are everyone's favorite combustible contender.

It'll take more than one game for the Nets to get a sense of where they belong in the East pecking order, but the Boston Celtics are a great first measuring stick. Though the Celtics will be without Kemba Walker, and though starter Gordon Hayward is gone and rotation mainstay Brad Wanamaker is also elsewhere, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown still head a team that hopes to advance at least as far as it did a year ago, when Boston reached the conference finals.

If Boston's cohesion and continuity expose a lack of Nets chemistry, and if all that Durant-Irving scoring punch isn't enough to offset what might be a shaky defense, a couple of the "here's how it might go bad" predictions will gain steam.

A slow start for Brooklyn could make a blockbuster trade likelier; you don't put a roster like this together to chase the fourth seed in the East. The Nets won't be patient.

Boston is tough, well-coached, talented and experienced. In the Celtics, the Nets might see traits they wish they had.

Or, Brooklyn may shred the Celtics and put the East on high alert.

Either way, it'll be fun.

When Jayson Tatum walks onto the floor on Christmas, he'll share it with Kevin Durant, the gold standard for big wing scorers over the past decade.

His goal should be to walk off that floor with everyone convinced the next decade belongs to him.

Tatum broke out last season, adding volume to his three-point shot and hitting a career-best 40.3 percent from deep. He attacked the basket more often, showed advanced craft in the pick-and-roll and continued to defend far better than we have a right to expect from most No. 1 scoring options. His playoff efforts were even more impressive, including averages of 25.7 points and 10.0 rebounds per game with a too-tiny-to-matter dip in scoring efficiency.

An age-21 season that concluded in Game 7 of the East Finals followed by an All-NBA nod leaves little room for improvement. Really, there's only one more level for Tatum to reach.

Boston lost talent over the offseason, and Kemba Walker's absence will put an even greater onus on Tatum to take that last step toward perennial MVP candidacy and true superstardom.

Luka and LeBron!

What else needs to be said about the fourth game of Friday's schedule, featuring the Dallas Mavericks and Los Angeles Lakers?

The prohibitive MVP favorite (for my money) squares off against the GOAT (again: my money), basically pitting the NBA's past and present against its future. Of course, Luka Doncic could use this game as his first step toward wresting the present away from LeBron James, whose Lakers look like favorites to repeat, but who'll face challenges from a list of teams that includes Doncic's Mavericks.

Dallas won't have Kristaps Porzingis, and it's probably unrealistic to think James or Anthony Davis will play as much or as intensely as they would in a game with larger stakes. Then again, when James' Lakers beat Doncic's Mavs in their last meeting, on Jan. 10, 2020, he racked up 35 points, 16 rebounds and seven assists. Maybe James will view every meeting with Doncic as an opportunity to prove something.

Doncic must see them the same way.

James has won three of the last four games in which both he and Doncic have played, logging at least 32 minutes in each of them. L.A. has grand ambitions, but it seems clear Doncic and the Mavericks have James' attention—and respect.

The over/under for triple-doubles recorded in this game should be 1.5. It wouldn't be the worst idea to take the over.

Luka Doncic should be the MVP favorite, but Anthony Davis might belong in that No. 2 spot. How the Lakers deploy AD on Christmas should reveal plenty about his odds of upsetting Luka and taking the league's highest individual honor.

Can't you just see a scenario in which LeBron, keen to preserve himself for the playoffs, willingly recedes into the background during the regular season? He could settle in as a facilitator and floor general while Davis takes on a much larger share of the offense.

James simply may not be able to sustain such a major role for a full year anymore—not with four playoff rounds mattering so much more to him than several months of less meaningful games. A preservative step back could be the right play.

Davis showed in the bubble that his offensive game no longer has any holes. He can space the floor, dominate in the pick-and-roll, face up, post up, run the floor and even create offense for others by drawing help. With James' offense becoming increasingly perimeter-based, the Lakers would be justified in using AD as the top defense-piercing option. He, not LeBron, could be L.A.'s best bet to occupy top-threat duties.

Teams attack opponents differently based on personnel. So if Davis runs amok against Dallas, it could be because the Lakers believe that's the best way to attack a Mavericks team without Kristaps Porzingis defending the rim. But if Davis explodes against the Mavs and goes on to up his usage rate in a career year, we may remember Friday's game as a point of transition.

Davis will someday overtake James as the Lakers' defining figure. Maybe that moment is coming sooner than later.

It's hard to live down a blown 3-1 lead, especially when that particularly brutal manner of defeat ended a season that many thought would conclude with a championship.

All the fallout in Los Angeles, from Doc Rivers' removal as head coach to the revelation of rift-causing preferential treatment for stars, stemmed from the Clips' failure to close the deal against the Denver Nuggets.

L.A. will get its shot at redemption in the Christmas nightcap.

Even if the Clippers wipe the floor with Denver, a legitimate contender in the West, it'll take much more work to change the narrative. Last season, we ascribed Los Angeles' regular-season failings to a focus on the big picture; these guys were talented enough to coast through the year, preserving health along the way. It turned out the explanation for the Clippers' malaise ran deeper, and it ultimately contributed to their postseason catastrophe.

To completely wash last year away, the Clippers have to prove they're serious about every game. No cutting corners. No half-stepping. No reliance on flipping the switch.

That starts with Denver, the team that turned the Clippers' lights out last season.

Nikola Jokic was a mess at the start of the 2019-20 season. Looking out of shape and strangely disinterested, he averaged just 15.0 points per game with a 54.8 true shooting percentage in October and only managed 15.8 points on 51.0 percent true shooting in November.

Jokic got it together as the season wore on and was fantastic in the playoffs, but there's no denying he entered the year either unready or unwilling to play his best.

This needs to be the year Jokic ditches his habitual slow starts.

The Denver Nuggets reside in that second tier of contenders just below the rarefied level occupied by the Lakers...and no one else. To lift themselves out of the group, the Nuggets have to play the full season with the will and intensity they showed in erasing back-to-back 3-1 playoff deficits. The renewed focus must start with Jokic.

Fortunately for Denver, the best passing center in league history looks svelte and spry. He a) dunked in preseason, and b) had enough lift to put a little flair on the rare running one-hander.

Everyone wants to start fast, but it's especially important for Jokic and the Nuggets to sprint out of the gates. Good thing the Joker looks ready to run.