Does the NBA Play on Thanksgiving?

The NBA has a long tradition of playing games on Thanksgiving Day.
Does the NBA play on Thanksgiving?
The answer is yes, the NBA does play on Thanksgiving.

NBA and Thanksgiving

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The NBA Thanksgiving Classic is a series of games held on Thanksgiving Day in the United States. It is usually held on the Friday after Thanksgiving and features some of the best teams in the league. Does the NBA play on Thanksgiving?

NBA games on Thanksgiving

The NBA has a long tradition of playing on Thanksgiving Day. In fact, it’s one of the league’s most anticipated events of the season.

Thanksgiving is one of the busiest days of the year for the NBA. Typically, there are five games played on Thanksgiving, which means that every team in the league is in action. The games are spread out throughout the day, so there’s always something to watch.

For basketball fans, Thanksgiving is a day to be thankful for the NBA. It’s a chance to watch some of the best players in the world compete against each other, and it’s a day to enjoy time with family and friends while watching some great basketball.

NBA players on Thanksgiving

Yes, the NBA does play on Thanksgiving Day. In fact, the first ever NBA game was played on Thanksgiving Day in 1951. The tradition started when the New York Knicks played the Fort Wayne Pistons at Madison Square Garden. The game has been held every year since then, with different teams playing each year. Some of the most popular teams to play on Thanksgiving Day include the Los Angeles Lakers, Miami Heat, and Boston Celtics.

Thanksgiving and the NBA

Thanksgiving is a day where family, friends, and loved ones come together to enjoy a meal and each other’s company. It’s a day of giving thanks and celebrating all that we are grateful for. For many, it’s also a day to watch some basketball. So, does the NBA play on Thanksgiving? Unfortunately, the answer is no.

Thanksgiving and NBA players

Although professional basketball games have been played on Thanksgiving Day since the 1950s, it was not until the late 1980s when the National Basketball Association (NBA) began to feature games on this holiday.

Since that time, the NBA has become synonymous with Thanksgiving, as several games are typically televised on this day each year. For many young fans, tuning in to see their favorite players on Thanksgiving has become a holiday tradition.

Not everyone is a fan of the NBA playing on Thanksgiving, however. Some purists argue that the holiday should be reserved for family and traditional activities, such as watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade or football.

Others argue that the NBA provides a much-needed distraction from these activities for those who are not interested in them. No matter what side of the debate you fall on, there can be no denying that the NBA has become a part of many peoples’ Thanksgiving Day celebrations.

Thanksgiving and NBA fans

For NBA fans, Thanksgiving is a time to relax and watch some of the best teams in the league go head-to-head. But for others, it’s a time to wonder why the NBA doesn’t take a break for the holiday.

The answer is simple: Thanksgiving is one of the busiest days of the year for the NBA. With so many people watching basketball on TV, it’s an ideal day for the league to showcase its product.

In recent years, the NBA has even taken to scheduling marquee matchups on Thanksgiving, such as the battle between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers in 2015. So while some fans may be disappointed that they can’t watch their favorite team play on Thanksgiving, there’s no shortage of great basketball action to enjoy.

The NBA and Thanksgiving

The NBA has a long history of playing games on Thanksgiving. It all started in the 1950s when the league started televising games on the holiday. This tradition has continued throughout the years and has become a staple for many NBA fans. Let’s take a look at the NBA’s history with playing games on Thanksgiving.

The NBA and Thanksgiving Day

The National Basketball Association (NBA) has a long tradition of playing on Thanksgiving Day, dating back to the league’s inaugural season in 1946. Since then, several games have been played on Thanksgiving, most recently in 2016 when the New York Knicks hosted the Milwaukee Bucks.

In recent years, however, the NBA has not scheduled any games for Thanksgiving Day. The last time the holiday fell on a Thursday was in 2013, and no games were played that day. This year, Thanksgiving falls on a Wednesday, so there will be no NBA games on that day either.

The reason for the lack of games on Thanksgiving Day is simple: the holiday is reserved for family time and other traditional activities. Playing basketball on Thanksgiving would interfere with that tradition, and so the NBA has chosen not to do so.

The NBA and Thanksgiving tradition

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a men’s professional basketball league in North America, composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). It is one of the four major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada, and is widely considered to be the premier men’s professional basketball league in the world.

The NBA has a long tradition of playing games on Thanksgiving Day. Many of the league’s most iconic moments have taken place on Thanksgiving, including Wilt Chamberlain’s 100-point game in 1961 and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time scoring record in 1984. The NBA has also used Thanksgiving as a platform to launch new initiatives, such as its first-ever nationally televised game in 1973 and its annual “Big Turkey” promotion.

In recent years, however, the NBA has been moving away from its traditional Thanksgiving slate. In 2017, only two games were played on Thanksgiving, down from a high of six games in 2009. And this year, there are no games scheduled for Thanksgiving at all.

There are several reasons for the NBA’s declining interest in playing on Thanksgiving. First and foremost, the holiday falls during the heart of the NBA season, when teams are already playing at a feverish pace and players are dealing with nagging injuries. Secondly, thanks to the influx of foreign-born players in recent years, more and more players are spending Thanksgiving away from their families. And finally, with the growth of social media and streaming services like Netflix, many fans now have other options for entertainment on Thanksgiving Day besides watching basketball.

Despite the declining interest from the league office, there are still plenty of fans who would like to see the NBA play on Thanksgiving Day. For many fans, it’s simply a tradition that they enjoy and don’t want to see go away. And for others, it’s an opportunity to watch some of the best players in the world compete on one of America’s most cherished holidays. Whether or not the NBA decides to bring back its traditional Thanksgiving slate remains to be seen, but for now, it looks like the holiday will be taking a backseat to other events on the league’s calendar.