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12 Days of NBA Christmas: Essential facts you need to know

Action Images / Reuters / USA TO

Who needs calling birds, french hens, and turtle doves when there's a star-studded slate of NBA games to catch on Christmas Day, right?

The league has a long and storied history of scheduling teams on the holiday. Here's a look at 12 facts every basketball fan should know about just how deep that history runs.

1. Only five players in NBA history have ever recorded a triple-double on Christmas Day: Russell Westbrook, LeBron James, John Havlicek, Oscar Robertson, and Billy Cunningham. Westbrook has a league-best 14 on the season, and could become the first player to reach two on the holiday when the Oklahoma City Thunder battle the Minnesota Timberwolves.

2. The Miami Heat own the all-time best winning percentage on Christmas at .833 (10-2). They hosted the visiting New Orleans Pelicans last season at the American Airlines Arena, winning 94-88 in overtime.

3. The distinction of having the lowest winning percentage (minimum five games) falls upon the Denver Nuggets at .200 (1-4). Only slightly better is the Seattle SuperSonics/Oklahoma City Thunder at .235 (4-13).

4. With the Timberwolves taking the floor on Sunday, the only two teams remaining without an appearance on Christmas will be the Charlotte Hornets and Memphis Grizzlies.

5. "The Black Mamba" Kobe Bryant scored 395 career points on Christmas games during his legendary career, which remains tops in league history. Oscar Robertson is second (377), followed by Dwyane Wade (277), Shaquille O'Neal (272), and James (270).

6. The first-ever Christmas Day game took place at the old Madison Square Garden in 1947, with the New York Knicks defeating the Providence Steamrollers 89-75.

7. In fact, the Knicks have more victories on Christmas than any other franchise at 22, although they have 28 losses along with it. They're also one of only two teams (Los Angeles Lakers) to have won 20 or more times.

8. Bernard King's 60-point onslaught against the New Jersey Nets in 1984 still holds strong as the highest-scoring night by any one player on Christmas. The four-time All-Star connected on 19 of his 30 field goal attempts in 41 minutes, while also grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out four assists in a six-point loss for the Knicks.

9. When the Chicago Bulls and San Antonio Spurs tip off at the AT&T Center, guard Wade will become the eighth player ever to play in 12 Christmas games (Bryant, O'Neal, Robertson, Dolph Schayes, Earl Monroe, Dick Van Arsdale, and Johnny Green).

10. O'Neal blocked 25 shots across 13 games, which is a record. Center DeAndre Jordan sits third on the all-time blocks list with 19, and can eek closer to Shaq when the Los Angeles Clippers face their neighbors in the Lakers at the Staples Center.

11. Factoring in the five taking place this year, the NBA will have hosted a grand total of 242 Christmas games since its inception.

12. The tradition of having five games on Christmas began nine years ago. The Pelicans, Heat, Bulls, Thunder, Clippers, Lakers, Houston Rockets, and Golden State Warriors played a year ago Sunday.

- with h/t to Basketball-Reference.com, USA Today Sports, and the Associated Press

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