Ranking NBA Christmas Day Matchups

The Phoenix Suns are going to play another game on Christmas - here's where their matchup ranks.

Apr 26, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Phoenix Suns forward Kevin Durant (35) and Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) react while Minnesota Timberwolves players celebrate during the second half of game three of the first round for the 2024 NBA playoffs at Footprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports / Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

PHOENIX -- The expected has become nearly official for the Phoenix Suns, per NBA insider Shams Charania.

The Suns are set to play their fourth consecutive Christmas Day game in 2024, featuring as the final matchup on the slate as the Denver Nuggets come to town.

Both the Suns and Nuggets appear to be power brokers for years to come in the West as recently as a year ago, but disappointing seasons from both franchises have created concern from the outside.

Nonetheless, this remains a star-studded matchup that should serve as a satisfying conclusion to the day of hoops.

Other reported matchups:

• San Antonio Spurs @ New York Knicks

• Minnesota Timberwolves @ Dallas Mavericks

• Philadelphia 76ers @ Boston Celtics

• Los Angeles Lakers @ Golden State Warriors

A comprehensive ranking of the games based on an array of factors such as star power, storylines, and expected team success:

5: Spurs-Knicks

Don't misconstrue this - this game features an ample amount of quality talent.

Victor Wembanyama is the main draw, but throw all-NBA PG Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, Julius Randle, Devin Vassell, and even Chris Paul into the fray as well.

The main reason this contest is ultimately last at the moment is due to the Spurs' poor output in 2023-24, but there is reason for optimism that they can drastically improve this season.

This will be a fun watch at the legendary Madison Square Garden.

4: Lakers-Warriors

LeBron James. Stephen Curry. Possibly the last runs the NBA legends have for these respective franchises. Lakers-Warriors has been a pillar of quality regular season and postseason matchups over recent years.

This could certainly be the setup for a classic matchup, but it feels as if both of these rosters are in limbo and won't figure into the upper echelon of teams in the West this season - so this one slots lower.

3: Timberwolves-Mavericks

A rematch of the 2024 Western Conference Finals, this should profile as a quality matchup on all fronts.

Anthony Edwards leads a very well rounded and tough Wolves team against the dynamic Luka Doncic/Kyrie Irving duo in front of what should be an electric Dallas crowd.

What many could forget is that this series featured Dallas going up 3-0 after three nail-biting wins. Minnesota played a quality series but couldn't close the deal.

This is a matchup to look forward to on multiple fronts.

2. Nuggets-Suns

As previously mentioned, this contest could get lost in the fray - as both teams disappointed relative to expectations in 2023-24.

Despite this, the top-end talent is still there. Three top-15 players in the league will presumably be suiting up for this contest, along with a pair of all-star caliber sidekicks.

The Suns and Nuggets have also previously partaken in some awesome games, including Christmas Day 2022. This was once viewed as a brewing rivalry - and there are still possibly some sparks in store moving forward.

1 76ers-Celtics

This has a great chance to be the best game of the day.

The 76ers and Celtics have been rivals for decades. The Celtics are the obvious defending champs. Philadelphia has formed a brand new big three to combat the Celtics' chance to repeat in 2025.

This is sure to be a heated matchup with playoff-like intensity and both teams should be top 3 in the East standings to this point.

This could be an epic duel between Joel Embiid and Jayson Tatum - with both teams also possessing depth at every spot off the bench.

This one is likely to be appointment television.