NBA Snubs Wizards From Holiday Schedule

The Wizards have not been given any holiday games, and they may see very few games played on national television.

Mar 27, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Wizards guard Bub Carrington (8) warms up before a game against the Indiana Pacers at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images | Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

The NBA gave a sneak peek of what the nationally televised schedule will look like, and the Washington Wizards were left entirely off of any holiday game. This may come as no surprise, as the Wizards boasted an 18-64 record last season. Now missing their leading scorer in Jordan Poole, Washington is in the midst of a complete rebuild, hoping to form something special with Tre Johnson, Alex Sarr and Bub Carrington.

The NBA announced which teams will be playing on opening night, Christmas, MLK Day, and the opening week games. The last time the Wizards played on Christmas Day was December 25th, 2017, where they beat the Boston Celtics 111-103. John Wall finished this game with 21 points and 14 assists.

Last season, the Wizards were tied for second for the fewest nationally televised games at five. Excluding NBA TV, the Wizards only had one nationally televised game. This is a sign of how poorly the league thought the Wizards would play, and a sign of the team not having any highlight reel players. Now, they have some promising talent in the form of Johnson and Sarr, who is currently playing in EuroBasket.

The number of nationally televised games may not jump to double digits for this upcoming season, but it should be a little higher than 5. With the hype surrounding Johnson's potential win of Rookie of the Year, Washington fans might see their team play on networks like ESPN more often.

The veterans on the team, CJ McCollum and Khris Middleton, could also provide a boost to the national TV schedule for Washington. Middleton is a one-time NBA champion, and McCollum is a seasoned veteran. The only downside to having these veterans be key players is the fact that they are not known for making highlight plays.

Feb 21, 2025; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Former teammates Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo (34) and Washington Wizards forward Khris Middleton (32) hug prior to their game at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

The Wizards could also see some games flexed into national slots throughout the season if they perform better than expected. It is still a rebuilding year, but they should smash their win prediction that was set for the squad.

The full schedule will be released on August 14th, and the NBA Cup schedule will be released on August 13th. This will show how many nationally televised games the young Wizards do get, and show what kind of expectations the league has set for Washington. If they get double-digit games, it means the league has high hopes in the DMV. If they have the same number of games or fewer, then the league thinks they will be fighting for Cameroon Boozer at the first overall pick.

Coming on Wednesday at 2 p.m. ET as part of the NBA Schedule Release presented by @Ticketmaster:

▪️ Sneak peek at Amazon’s game schedule on Prime Video for the 2025-26 regular season

▪️ Complete Group Play schedule for the Emirates NBA Cup 2025 pic.twitter.com/uQs05PDbop

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) August 12, 2025

Either way, the Wizards are still not ready for playoff basketball, but they will be soon. Fans may know what is going on in DC basketball, but it may remain a mystery if the league does not hand the Wizards any prime time slots.

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