Podcast Summary – No Dunks: “Ranking All 5 NBA Christmas Day Games”

Host: J. Skeets (solo)
Date: December 26, 2025
Podcast: No Dunks (iHeartPodcasts)

Episode Overview

J. Skeets, solo in the “yard” with Eshua Kid on buttons (but off-mic due to post-Christmas kid chaos), recaps and ranks all five NBA Christmas Day games from most entertaining to least entertaining. Skeets dives into key performances, pivotal moments, production notes, storylines, and league-wide themes, plus he responds to wild finishes and major individual outbursts—including a legendary performance by Nikola Jokic. The tone is humorous, energetic, and packed with real fan enthusiasm for all things NBA.

Rankings & Key Points

1. Denver Nuggets vs. Minnesota Timberwolves – The Classic

Ranking: #1 – Most Entertaining
Timestamps: [06:38]–[21:13]

• Headline: Nikola Jokic’s Historic 56-Point Triple Double
  • “Jokic recorded a 56-point triple double. He set an NBA record with 18 points in overtime.” [04:29]
  • The only players with more points on Christmas: Bernard King (1984), Wilt Chamberlain (1961).
  • Jokic also broke Steph Curry’s record of points scored in overtime (18 to Curry’s 17 in 2016).
• Game Flow & Moments:
  • Nuggets missing three starters still prevail in an “instant classic” against surging Wolves.
  • Anthony Edwards heroic in the 4th, including a huge turnaround three to force OT; finishes with 43.
  • “It felt like he [Jokic] won MVP on Christmas yesterday. Like, his fourth.” [10:32]
  • Nuggets come back from a 9-point deficit in OT: “How many times do we see a team that's down nine in the extra frame come back to win? That can't have happened often.” [13:13]
• Themes:
  • “Christmas Day games... showcased the past, present and future of NBA greats.”
  • Nuggets’ depth outshone Wolves’ weak bench—“My only concern here with the Wolves, because that was a hell of a fight… another one of these games where they got very little from the bench.” [16:16]
  • Minnesota’s frustration peaks: Anthony Edwards ejected after second technical, following contact with Jokic.
• Notable Quote:
  • “From all of those guys, the past, the present, the future, Jokic remains the best. Is the best. Period.” [09:43]
  • “Jokic gets your Hoe Boy of the Night—56 points, 16 rebounds, 15 assists, 2 blocks, and a partridge in a pear tree. My God. It looks fake. It’s video game numbers from this guy.” [1:09:05]

2. New York Knicks vs. Cleveland Cavaliers – The Comeback

Ranking: #2
Timestamps: [21:16]–[38:50]

• Headline: Knicks Erase 17-Point 4th Quarter Deficit
  • Jalen Brunson (34p) and the bench lead wild 126–124 win
  • “Five games is too many... Start with a banger, end with a classic, but I’d cut these to three.” [23:05]
• Star & Bench Impact:
  • “Brunson and Donovan Mitchell are the definition of big-game players... Both those guys, feels like they show up in Big’s games.” [25:42]
  • Bench heroes: “Reserves won the game for the Knicks—Clarkson in custom red shades, Kolik (16p, 9a), and especially Mitchell Robinson with 5 offensive rebounds in 3 minutes late.”
  • “Mitchell Robinson’s impact was unreal. The more I look at Mitchell Robinson, I'm like, is this guy... the thing that pushes them over the edge to maybe at least get there to the finals?” [29:55]
• Cavs Takeaways:
  • Evan Mobley’s surprise return (14p, 9r.)
  • Cavs “should have won,” but showing signs of improvement; Jared Allen again bullied by Robinson.
• Cultural/Production Notes:
  • Skeets rants about bland ESPN graphics: “Give me some Christmas flair. Like, what the hell? Why is the score bug vanilla?... Like, nothing.” [34:33]
  • Alt-cast “Dunk the Halls” had “technical difficulties,” but cartoon dunking was hilarious.
  • “Obnoxious” Marty Supreme digital court ads noted.
• Notable Moment:
  • “Clarkson and Kolik, I called them a law firm, had MSG going nuts.” [28:35]

3. San Antonio Spurs vs. Oklahoma City Thunder – The Kryptonite

Ranking: #3
Timestamps: [38:54]–[57:20]

• Headline: Spurs Beat OKC for Third Time in <2 Weeks
  • De’Aaron Fox: 29p, sets tone; intensity, rivalry sky-high.
  • “Spurs... are seemingly the Thunders kryptonite. People are wondering: Is Victor Wembanyama Lex Luthor?” [41:05]
• Game Context:
  • Spurs have won 3 of Thunder’s 6 total losses—a pattern, not a fluke
  • “The Thunder, after opening their season with 24 wins in their first 25 games, have now lost 4 of 6—including 3 defeats to the Spurs.” [43:11]
  • Spurs shoot 54%, Thunder only 39%; OKC can’t capitalize on open shots (Caruso starts 0-9)
  • “Let Wemby roam... They can just leave Alex Caruso and see if Alex Caruso can beat you. And he couldn't on Christmas.” [46:23]
• Player Dynamics:
  • Wembanyama’s defensive impact huge, even in limited minutes (still off the bench).
  • Chet Holmgren’s struggles continue vs. San Antonio. Panel debate: Should OKC try putting Chet on Wemby defensively, to disrupt Spurs’ flow?
  • Thunder wings (Jalen Williams, SGA) both below their best.
  • Spurs’ rookie wings “never too high, never too low”—Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper both praised as steady beyond their years.
• Notable Quotes:
  • “We need a playoff series... They got to see each other. We got to get this real rivalry going.” [49:57]
  • “Harper and Castle... they're so good, such in control... the way they hold themselves out there... steady as a rock. Pretty impressive for their age.” [56:33]

4. Houston Rockets vs. Los Angeles Lakers – The Blowout & Redick’s Rant

Ranking: #4
Timestamps: [58:29]–[1:06:50]

• Headline: Rockets Dominate, Lakers’ Effort & Identity in Question
  • Amen Thompson: 26p (12-19 FG), 7r, 5a—emphatic “winner” of Christmas per host.
  • Skeets: “…Perfect example of what Houston’s offense is meant to look like at its best.” [1:00:35]
  • Rockets feast on glass, balanced attack with Durant’s shooting and bigs.
• Lakers’ Woes:
  • “This is the sort of loss we've seen a couple times this season. They are just outclassed against athletic groups like Houston.” [1:01:43]
  • JJ Redick (Lakers’ head coach) delivers fiery postgame:
    • “We don’t care enough right now. And that’s the part that bothers you... We don’t care enough to be a professional. I’m not doing another 53 games like this.” [1:02:54]
  • Skeets speculates about possible trade deadline moves; questions LeBron’s attitude and influence after “I don’t want to play on Christmas anymore” comments.
  • LeBron posts -33 (worst as a Laker, 3rd worst of career).
  • Austin Reaves injured; speculation on whether he’s a trade chip.
• Memorable Quote:
  • “Redick was over this shit. And this isn't just him reacting to one game. This is like a week, or if not two-week trend here from how the Lakers have played.” [1:03:50]

5. Golden State Warriors vs. Dallas Mavericks – Drama Undercut by Injury

Ranking: #5 – Least Entertaining
Timestamps: [1:06:56]–[1:15:27]

• Headline: Warriors Take Over as AD Injured; Cooper Flagg Breaks Out
  • Steph Curry: 23p; Warriors win at home, move above .500
  • “For the second straight year, the Mavericks had a star player forced to leave the Christmas Day game with a lower body injury. Last season, Luka... this year, it's Anthony Davis.” [1:07:22]
• Mavs Storylines:
  • Anthony Davis exits early, “right groin spasms”—is this the end of his Mavs tenure? Skeets: “Half-man, half-a-season.” [1:08:18]
  • Cooper Flagg: rookie sensation, “balling out,” posts 27p (13/21 FG), 6r, 5a. Per Skeets, “If Jokic won MVP on Christmas Day, maybe Cooper won Rookie of the Year on Christmas Day.” [1:08:48]
• Warriors Notes:
  • Draymond Green/Steve Kerr tiff resolved; Draymond, though, minus-9 in limited impactful play.
  • Al Horford returns from injury for second game in a month, sparks team off bench (14p, 4/4 3PT). Skeets celebrates: “Al Horford and those sexy eyes playing well on Christmas Day.” [1:11:40]
  • Klay Thompson gets a nice ovation.
• Notable Moment:
  • “Luckily for Mavs fans, at least had Cooper Flagg balling out... He's going to play a lot of Christmas Day games, I would imagine, if the team is competitive here moving forward.” [1:08:34]

Thematic Insights & League Nuggets

Christmas Day NBA: A Matter of Tradition, Showmanship, and Production

• Skeets critiques the current 5-game Christmas format (“start with a banger, end with a classic, but I’d cut these to three”) [23:05], as well as ESPN’s lack of holiday production flair.
• Lakers and LeBron’s fatigue show the downside of traditional scheduling.
• Holiday alternative broadcasts (“Dunk the Halls” with cartoon characters) both amuse and malfunction.

Bench Depth, Superstars, and Narrative

• Jokic cements “best in the business” status, while new stars (Cooper Flagg, Castle, Harper) signal NBA’s “next gen.”
• Contending teams’ second units (and certain regulars, like Mitchell Robinson) make the difference in close or comeback games.
• Slumping squads (Wolves, Cavs, particularly Lakers) see tough questions asked about identity and effort.

Rivalries & Repeats

• Spurs/Thunder rivalry emerging as a must-see, with San Antonio repeatedly unseating the champs.
• “We need a playoff series…This is a real rivalry in the making.” [49:57]

Notable Quotes

• On Jokic’s Christmas Performance:
  “From all of those guys, the past, the present, the future, Jokic remains the best. Is the best. Period.” [09:43]
• On Knicks’ Bench & Robinson:
  “Mitchell Robinson’s impact was unreal in this game... Is this guy the one that pushes them over the edge?” [29:55]
• On Lakers’ Dysfunction (JJ Redick’s words):
  “We don’t care enough right now. We don’t care enough to do the things that are necessary. I’m not doing another 53 games like this.” [1:02:54]
• On Christmas Game Scheduling:
  “Five days on Christmas is five games too many. Probably. ...Let’s go down to three.” [23:05]
• On the Spurs/Thunder Matchup:
  “We need a playoff series... They got to see each other.” [49:57]

Other Memorable/Peculiar Moments

• Skeets’ riffs on production (“Obnoxious Marty Supreme court ads... too bright, too obnoxious.” [36:42]), and on alt-casts gone wrong (cartoon refs joining the game).
• A unique “Ho Ho Ho” sponsorship for Whoa Boy of the Night, thanks to Chris, Andrew & Serena Ho—a running community-oriented bit.
• Skeets self-aware about his rapid pace: “I talked for a lot. I talk very fast. So I forced you to not listen to this one on 1.5 speed.” [1:19:09]

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |---------------------------------------------|--------------| | Jokic/Nuggets vs Wolves Recap & Ranking | 06:38–21:13 | | Knicks/Cavs Recap | 21:16–38:50 | | Spurs/Thunder Recap | 38:54–57:20 | | Rockets/Lakers (Redick Rant) | 58:29–1:06:50| | Warriors/Mavs Recap | 1:06:56–1:15:27| | Whoa Boy of the Night (Jokic) | 1:09:05 | | General Production & Thematic Notes | Scattered, esp. 34:33, 36:42, and 1:15–1:19|

Summary Verdict

Skeets’ solo Christmas recap is a whirlwind, fan-focused ride through a slate that skewed as much to the league’s future (Jokic’s greatness, emerging Spurs, Cooper Flagg’s breakout) as its present and past stars. The episode is packed with stats, jokes, honest critiques, and the energy of a true NBA sicko—and is a must-listen for anyone seeking a thorough (and opinionated) postmortem on the holiday’s basketball marathons.