LeBron James agrees with Rui Hachimura about Christmas Day uniforms ahead of 18th appearance: "Wonder why it stopped"
LA Lakers star LeBron James has become a huge part of one of professional sports' most long-standing traditions, the NBA's Christmas Day matchups. He holds the record for the most games played on Christmas, with 17 in his 21-year career.
In those 17 contests, he was able to experience one of the best additions to the Christmas Day game traditions, the Christmas Jerseys. From 2008 through 2016, the league allowed the teams scheduled to play on Dec. 25 to don special uniforms.
The fans enjoyed these unique looks, and the players did, too. LeBron James posted on X (formerly known as Twitter) regarding these jerseys.
"I do wish we had Xmas day uniforms across the league still. Wonder why it stopped," James wrote.
These sentiments echo that of his teammate Rui Hachimura, who, while excited to play in Monday's Christmas Day game, would want to have the tradition of wearing a special jersey back.
As per ESPN reporter Dave McMenamin, Hachimura asked if teams would be wearing unique jerseys, and after he was informed that there wouldn't be any, he was quite disappointed.
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Taking a look at LeBron James' Christmas Day stats
The fact that "King James" has played the most matchups on Christmas Day is a testament to his effect on the teams he plays for and the attention he commands throughout the league.
He also proved that he deserved to play in each of the 17 Christmas Day games he played. He has averaged 27.1 points, 7.6 rebounds and seven assists per game in all these outings.
James' highest-scoring performance came against the Brooklyn Nets in 2021. He scored 39 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. He also tallied three total steals. He scored 30 points or more in five other instances.
In 2010, LeBron James put up his only triple-double performance on Christmas. As a member of the Miami Heat, he had 27 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists against the LA Lakers. He has also played in six Christmas Day games where he ended the night with a double-double.
His lowest-scoring showing was in 2018 against the Golden State Warriors, where he scored 17 points. However, this was one of his double-double games, as he also ended the night with 13 rebounds.
LeBron James scored less than twenty points twice, once in 2008 and another in 2013.
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