LeBron James continues to defy the odds in year 23. One of the more personal records the NBA legend holds is playing on Christmas Day. It’ll be his 20th such instance in a few days. Ever since he activated the $52.6 million extension in the summer, the question of impending retirement has loomed over his head. A reporter reignited those flames recently when he asked James why December 25 was “still” so important to him.

“I’d much rather be at home with my family,” James honestly said of playing on Christmas. “But I mean, it’s the game that I love. It’s a game I watched when I was a kid on Christmas Day, watching a lot of the greatest play the game on Christmas. Obviously, I’m gonna be completely honest, I would like to be home on the couch with my family all throughout the day. But our number is called, so we have to go out and perform, and I look forward to it.”

Everyone, of course, knows the sacrifices the Los Angeles Lakers veteran has made over the years. But this family sentiment is not something new. The 4x NBA champion already expressed his concerns in the past about being away from his family during the holidays.

“If you ask any player in the league, we’d rather be home with our families,” James told CBS Sports in 2010. ” It’s not just a regular holiday. It’s definitely one of those days that you wish you could wake up in the morning with the kids and open up presents. The fans, we always say it’s good for the fans. But the fans get an opportunity to see us all year. We’ve got TV games all year.”

James has said the same thing in similar ways ever since. But he never disrespected the fans or any stakeholder, for that matter. His only request was to stay home, to enjoy that family time on the special day. But the viewership numbers paint a different picture, with fans eager to see their stars in action.

Take last year’s Christmas slate; it delivered the league’s best Christmas Day viewership on ESPN in half a decade. The NBA announced viewership was up 83% compared to 2023.

Victor Wembanyama’s appearance in Madison Square Garden drew 4.91 million average viewers, making it the most-watched Christmas Day opener in 13 years, up nearly double from the previous year. And James knows the importance of this, as he was also part of these historic numbers last year.

LeBron James vs Kevin Durant set to take center stage on Christmas Day

One reason why the Christmas Day numbers improved last year was the epic game between LeBron James and Stephen Curry. The highly anticipated matchup gave fans their money’s worth with Curry’s deep game-tying 3 followed by Austin Reaves’ game-winning layup at the end of regulation. It drew an average of 7.8 million viewers and peaked at 8.3 million. The league marked a 499% increase over last year’s injury-riddled Miami Heat vs Philadelphia 76ers debacle.

The NBA intends to remain a hit, and surely James is at the center of its promotion. This time, he’ll face his Olympic teammate and long-term rival in Kevin Durant. The matchup marks the first Christmas Day meeting of the duo since 2018, renewing one of the league’s defining modern-day rivalries on its biggest regular-season stage. There are plenty of other firsts in this matchup.

The Rockets play on December 25 for the first time since 2019. Alperen Sengun and Amen Thompson will also make Christmas debuts. Luka Doncic will also play his first Christmas game in Purple and Gold. Alongside him will be LeBron James, who has historically delivered on this day. Across 19 career appearances, he has averaged 26.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 7.2 assists, consistently performing under the spotlight.

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The Lakers and New York Knicks are tied for the most wins on Christmas Day, with 25.

Did you know: Ten players have recorded a triple-double on Christmas Day: Oscar Robertson (four), John Havlicek, Billy Cunningham, LeBron James, Russell Westbrook (two), Draymond Green, Kemba Walker, James Harden, Nikola Jokic, and Austin Reaves.