The L.A. Lakers hit the court on Christmas Day to face the Golden State Warriors, but with the NFL also scheduling games that same day, NBA star LeBron James had a bold warning for pro football.

“Christmas is our day,” he warned the NFL.

The Lakers-Warriors game was certainly a battle. With the Warriors’ Steph Curry tying the game with a 3-pointer with only 7.1 seconds on the clock and the Lakers’ Austin Reaves making a last-second shot to win the game, Christmas Day was a nail-biter for the Lakers.

Several other NBA games on that holy day were also close. The Knicks beat the Spurs 117-114. Meanwhile, the 76ers pulled out a four-point win over the Celtics, 118-114, and the Timber Wolves beat the Mavericks 105-99. The largest gap was when Phoenix beat Denver 110-100. All these games were exciting to the end, with no blowouts.

Meanwhile, the NFL scheduled two games for Christmas Day, and neither was much to write Santa about. The Chiefs beat the Steelers in a not particularly close 29-10 final, while the Ravens decimated the Houston Texans 31-2.

Despite the drubbing, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has said he wants the NFL to expand its Christmas schedule and to become a permanent part of the holiday.

“Christmas Day is Christmas Day, and it doesn’t wait around for what day it’s on. We want to be there on Christmas Day,” Jones said in a recent radio interview, adding, “I would think the future is whatever day it’s on, we’re going to be there on Christmas.”

But the mere presence of NFL games on Christmas Day set James off, according to the New York Post.

“Merry Christmas to my family back home. I’m coming home,” James told ESPN after the game. “And I love the NFL. I love the NFL. But Christmas is our day.”

Still, James has a reason to worry. With the NBA’s ratings sinking yearly, any encroachment on its TV turf is a serious threat.

Indeed, last year, the NFL trounced the NBA. On Christmas Day, the Raiders-Chiefs game earned 31 million viewers, while the NBA earned less than 11 million viewers across all five games.

This year, with two NFL games on the big day, the NBA was sure to be hit even harder by the disparity in viewers. When all the ratings are ready, we’ll know its full extent in a few days.

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