The NBA has arranged five games for the 2020 Christmas and, according to ESPN, there are: Los Angeles Lakers vs. Los Angeles Clippers, New Orleans Pelicans vs. Denver Nuggets, Boston Celtics vs. Toronto Raptors, Milwaukee Bucks vs. Philadelphia 76ers and Houston Rockets vs. Golden State Warriors (away teams come first).

Battle of Los Angeles

The most eye-catching game must be the L.A. derby. Both teams have done enough improvements on their franchises in the offseason and aimed for the championship. The Lakers found Anthony Davis for LeBron James at the cost of all their future assets, adding more shooters to their unit and introduced DeMarcus Cousins with a really good deal. One of their missions in the new season is to show the league who the real owner of Los Angeles is.

As for the Clippers, the team already defeated the purple and gold twice on the market. They signed Kawhi Leonard as a free agent who kept the Lakers waiting for two weeks; they landed Paul George in the trade who expressed his will to play for the Lakers two years ago. Now, it's time to defeat the Lakers again on the court in front of fans all over the world.

One thing must be pointed out is that the Clippers are still improving their franchise. Patrick Patterson, who reached a buyout with the Oklahoma City Thunder, was expected to join the Clippers. Though the 30-year-old has not been doing well with the OKC in the past two years, as a 2.06-meter power forward who kept a 3-point rate of 36.7 percent in his career, Patterson could still be helpful on the court in the small-ball era.

In the East the throne is empty, again

This may feel like déjà vu for both the Bucks and the 76ers. One year ago, after James departed the Cleveland Cavaliers for the Lakers, the Bucks and the 76ers both tried to fill in that vacuum – the Bucks built one of the league's best shooting units for Giannis Antetokounmpo who became the NBA MVP while the 76ers made a four-All-Star lineup. However, both teams were defeated by Leonard and the Raptors in the playoffs.

Now that Leonard also left for the Western Conference, there is a chance there for the two teams again and neither wanted to miss it again, Milwaukee kept most of the franchise that helped them win 60 games last season. Philadelphia replaced Jimmy Butler with Al Horford, whose 33-year-old-age and four-year, 109-million-U.S.-dollar deal aside, can be seen as an improvement for the team this season. More importantly, neither side can afford to wait considering their payrolls. The Christmas Day contest is just the beginning for them.

The same two teams with something different

Neither the Warriors nor the Rockets have been strangers to the Christmas Day games in recent years, just like they have been familiar with each other. As GSW made five straight NBA Finals, their biggest rivalry were the Rockets in the last two seasons.

The story might be a bit different this time. Firstly, both sides saw changes in their units – Golden State replaced Kevin Durant with D'Angelo Russell and are unlikely to have Klay Thompson before 2020; Russell Westbrook substituted for Chris Paul in Houston. Secondly, both teams will have different mindsets – even the most loyal fans will not consider Golden State as a major champion candidate this season; Houston spent the last two years altering their franchise to defeat GSW but that's not the case anymore.

What remains unchanged is that the two teams are still one of each other's biggest obstacles to the NBA Finals. Furthermore, what happened in the offseason made people underestimate the Warriors and the Rockets. They can prove people wrong on Christmas Day.

Probably the most interesting matchup

The Pelicans and the Nuggets share one thing in common, they both have young core pairs. Jamal Murry and Nikola Jokic are 22 and 24 years old respectively. 19-year-old Zion Williamson, 21-year-old Lonzo Ball, and 21-year-old Brandon Ingram are likely to secure four spots in the starting lineup of the Pelicans with 29-year-old Jrue Holiday.

However, that's probably the only thing in common the two teams have. The Nuggets have one of the most complicated offensive systems in the league and they have never been known for athleticism in the past two seasons, but that did not stop them from ranking No. 2 in the West last season.

By contrast, the Pelicans have extraordinary physical talents thanks to Williamson, Holiday and Ingram and the team may be able to bring the league's most exciting fast break in the new season thanks to Ball, Ingram, and Williamson, but other than that, they won’t have many options in offense.

The two teams have different goals too. Denver cannot wait because the 2019-20 season is their best chance to go for the championship. After that, Murray's maximum contract will begin to take effect; the team will figure out how or whether they can keep Jerami Grant and Paul Milsap.

New Orleans, on the contrary, have enough time to observe which of the young talents will meet the expectations. Their trade with the Lakers over Davis already gave the team enough assets to wait.

The most awkward matchup

The Raptors will finally play on Christmas Day after 18 years. But this time, they don't even have a true star player. Kyle Lowry seems like one, but he is already 33 years old and has never been known for carrying the team. Moreover, the team is in an embarrassing situation. There's no way for them to compete for the championship, but they are not bad enough to tank. That's why there were reports, recently, about the team considering sending Lowry, Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka away in a trade.

Like the Raptors, the Celtics won't be able to threaten the Bucks or the 76ers in the new season. The team, watched Kyrie Irving and Horford leave this summer and only introduced Kemba Walker, who is at best an All-Star player. If they want to make any difference, they will need Gordon Hayward to find the best himself back and count on Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown to grow much faster than before.