NBA games on TV today: Full schedule, times, channels, live streams to watch 2025 Christmas basketball games
Christmas Day has become the NBA’s signature regular-season showcase, and this year’s slate once again dominates the holiday sports calendar with wall-to-wall national television coverage and easy streaming options for fans.
The league typically stacks the schedule with five marquee matchups, staggered from early afternoon through late night so viewers can tune in around family plans. Games are spread across the NBA’s primary broadcast partners, with early tipoffs usually airing on ESPN or ABC, a high-profile late-afternoon contest in an exclusive network window, and a primetime clash featuring one of the league’s biggest brands. A nightcap often follows on cable to close out roughly 12 hours of continuous basketball.
For viewers, the key is knowing where to find each matchup. Traditional cable and satellite packages still carry the national networks, while cord-cutters can access the full Christmas lineup through major live TV streaming platforms that offer ABC, ESPN and other NBA partners in their channel bundles. Network apps and authenticated streaming sites provide additional ways to watch if you already have a TV subscription.
Christmas games are more than just midseason dates on the calendar. The league uses these national windows to spotlight MVP candidates, emerging stars and new-look contenders in playoff-caliber environments. Coaches and players often talk about the heightened intensity, and front offices pay attention to how their rosters respond under the brightest lights.
From a league perspective, the holiday schedule is also a barometer of market power. Teams and players featured on Christmas are typically those driving ratings, ticket demand and social buzz. For fans, it’s a convenient checkpoint to reassess early-season narratives: which contenders look real, which experiments are faltering, and which surprise teams might be ahead of schedule.
To follow the 2025 Christmas games, check the official NBA site and your local listings for finalized tipoff times, channels and streaming details. With multiple national broadcasts and robust digital options, virtually every fan can settle in and make Christmas synonymous with NBA basketball.
The league typically stacks the schedule with five marquee matchups, staggered from early afternoon through late night so viewers can tune in around family plans. Games are spread across the NBA’s primary broadcast partners, with early tipoffs usually airing on ESPN or ABC, a high-profile late-afternoon contest in an exclusive network window, and a primetime clash featuring one of the league’s biggest brands. A nightcap often follows on cable to close out roughly 12 hours of continuous basketball.
For viewers, the key is knowing where to find each matchup. Traditional cable and satellite packages still carry the national networks, while cord-cutters can access the full Christmas lineup through major live TV streaming platforms that offer ABC, ESPN and other NBA partners in their channel bundles. Network apps and authenticated streaming sites provide additional ways to watch if you already have a TV subscription.
Christmas games are more than just midseason dates on the calendar. The league uses these national windows to spotlight MVP candidates, emerging stars and new-look contenders in playoff-caliber environments. Coaches and players often talk about the heightened intensity, and front offices pay attention to how their rosters respond under the brightest lights.
From a league perspective, the holiday schedule is also a barometer of market power. Teams and players featured on Christmas are typically those driving ratings, ticket demand and social buzz. For fans, it’s a convenient checkpoint to reassess early-season narratives: which contenders look real, which experiments are faltering, and which surprise teams might be ahead of schedule.
To follow the 2025 Christmas games, check the official NBA site and your local listings for finalized tipoff times, channels and streaming details. With multiple national broadcasts and robust digital options, virtually every fan can settle in and make Christmas synonymous with NBA basketball.
