What playing on Christmas Day means for the Miami Heat

In case you may have missed it, the Miami Heat are returning to the NBA’s annual Christmas Day slate and will play the Boston Celtics, the league announced Tuesday. This matchup will be the second of five games, and also marks the second of what is expected to be several nationally televised games for the Heat this season (their opening night game will also be on national television). But this one means just a little more.

They’re back to relevancy:

Miami last appeared on Christmas Day in 2023-24, the season after they made an improbable NBA Finals appearance, against the Philadelphia 76ers. But mixed into that was that they have largely been irrelevant the last four seasons. They made four straight play-in games and had their six-year postseason drought snapped last spring. Miami was lacking direction. Acquiring Giannis Antetokounmpo gave them relevance, but having a Christmas Day game — a day typically full of marquee matchups — solidifies it, at least in the eyes of the NBA. Miami still has to prove it on the court.

Reigniting a rivalry?:

Both the Heat and Celtics are storied franchises with a fierce rivalry for nearly two decades. However, it has lost some luster due to the Heat’s lack of relevancy. With Antetokounmpo, there’s a new spark. There’s a new flame. Both teams are trending in opposite directions, but this is the closest it’s been to a rivalry in nearly a half-decade. Plus, not to bury the lede, but the Celtics nearly stole the two-time MVP away from Miami, as they were the only other team seriously in the running, and reluctant to include Hugo Gonzalez.

Can Heat keep streak alive?:

The Miami Heat are the NBA’s best team on Christmas. They are 12-2 all-time in Christmas Day games, the best in the NBA (min. 2 G), including a nine-game win streak that dates back to the 2009-10 season. Erik Spoelstra hasn’t lost a single Christmas Day game as head coach with an average point differential of 9.6 points. Another chance to play on the holiday gives the Heat another chance to stack another W.