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Memphis Grizzlies: NBA Can Keep Its Christmas Day Games

By Christian Dudley

MEMPHIS, TN - MARCH 12: Marc Gasol #33 of the Memphis Grizzlies looks on during the game against the Milwaukee Bucks on March 12, 2018 at FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)
MEMPHIS, TN - MARCH 12: Marc Gasol #33 of the Memphis Grizzlies looks on during the game against the Milwaukee Bucks on March 12, 2018 at FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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The 2018-19 NBA regular season schedule has been released and the Memphis Grizzlies will once again have an off day on Christmas.

The NBA offseason is flying by. Before you know it, training camp will arrive. This week, the first few highlights of the upcoming 2018-19 season trickled onto social media platforms. Some of the NBA’s biggest viewing dates had been made official. By Friday, the entire regular season schedule dropped for all 30 teams.

Of course there are the large-market face-offs on Opening Night. Without a doubt the Golden State Warriors would hit the hardwood on Opening Night to receive their latest championship rings. The Boston Celtics and Philadelphia 76ers also lucked into Opening Night action.

Then there are the Christmas Day games. It is all about the big bucks for the association. On the largest viewing day of the NBA’s regular season schedule, the league is afraid of throwing teams of small markets into the spotlight. They want the game’s biggest stars on live television.

The association is not dumb — they want to maximimze their incoming dollars. This is why you will see the Warriors, Celtics, and 76ers routinely placed on the NBA’s Christmas list. Plus, you already guessed it — LeBron James and the new-look Los Angeles Lakers received the nod, too.

These teams are regulars in the Christmas Day lineup. The Lakers have appeared 43 times. Boston? 31. Philadelphia has received 30. Golden State is at 27 and counting. You are not the only person feeling as if it is the same NBA teams playing on every December 25th.

So what about those Memphis Grizzlies? The gang from Beale Street? Each year, Grizz Nation longs for a Christmas Day matchup featuring their beloved squad. Unfortunately, as you scroll through all five of the newly-released list of Christmas Day pairings, the Grizzlies are not in the conversation.

It is absolutely understandable to watch Stephen Curry‘s Warriors face King James to maximize viewership. However, it the league needs to switch up a few of their other four openings. The Milwaukee Bucks visiting the New York Knicks? Fizdale’s Knicks?!

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The Knickerbockers are playing on Christmas Day purely based off their market size. It is a shame that Marc Gasol, Mike Conley, and the Grizzlies are not going against New York on Christmas Day. Another “L” would likely be headed toward Fizdale’s record and Big Spain would log a smooth 20-point, 10-rebound game. But the NBA does not want that possibility to exist. It is Memphis.

When based out of Vancouver, the Grizzlies never received a Christmas Day game. Now in Memphis, the Grizz remain game-less in the Christmas Day category. Memphis cannot even receive a lump of coal from the association. Rather, the league goes without recognizing the Grizzlies franchise. By now, Grizz Nation is unfazed by it. The fan base does not place stock in hoping for a Christmas Day game. If it ever happens, it will be a total shock to the franchise.

The NBA can keep its slate of Christmas Day games. What they cannot take away is their game on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The league learned from their flub in 2017 when the Memphis Grizzlies did not play a home game on the MLK holiday.

This particular holiday is all about Martin Luther King Jr. The setting is Memphis, Tennessee. The history. The meaning. In having the Grizzlies take the court on the third Monday of January, a celebration of life is given to one of the most influential human beings in the history of mankind.

In 2017, the NBA scheduled the Grizz to play one day before the holiday with a celebration planned for the next day. It was a nice thought, but a tradition became broken. Since arriving in Memphis for the 2001-02 season, the Grizzlies have played a home game on MLK Day except in 2017.

Fans were mad. The city of Memphis was upset. This is the one thing that the Memphis Grizzlies can count on receiving each year because everyone knows they do not stand a chance at receiving an appearance on Christmas Day. Thankfully, as the 2018-19 schedule shows, the NBA has given Memphis a second-consecutive year with a home game on MLK Day.

If it came down to it, Grizz Nation should want the MLK Day Game over a matchup on Christmas Day. There are fewer games scheduled on national television, so ultimately, a larger focus is placed on the Grizzlies, Memphis, and most importantly — the life of Martin Luther King Jr. Market size does not matter on this specific day. When it comes to the league scheduling the Grizzlies, they can keep their Christmas Day games.

Go Grizz! 

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