The NBA’s marquee regular season day has been and always will be Christmas Day. This season there are five games that go down on the 25th. Just because it is Christmas day and you are enjoying your holidays; it isn’t the time to give your fantasy roster the time off as well.

Capitalize on the day and stock your roster to maximize the available points. Too many general managers will look at the week as a whole; however, if you really want to distance yourself in the pool you will focus in on this day in particular.

Lets start with the Chicago Bulls versus the Brooklyn Nets. I can’t recommend anyone from the Nets as they are such a patchwork of talent at the moment as they are hobbled by injuries throughout. For the Bulls though I definitely like Joakim Noah and Carlos Boozer as each should be able to impose their way on the depleted front-line of the Nets. Kevin Garnett is going to have his hands full and so will the rest of the squad in trying to defend the versatile duo from Chicago.

The second game on the schedule sees the Oklahoma City Thunder travel into New York to play the banged up Knicks. At this point Carmelo Anthony is questionable for the game due to a sprained ankle. A player who will be called upon to step up in the absence or hobbling presence of, will be J.R. Smith.

Smith got off to a slow start this season but he seems to have found his shooting stroke of late. Over the last five games Smith is averaging 14.6 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 5.4 apg and 1.4 steals per game. Smith will be needed in a huge way for the Knicks to avoid an embarassing home court loss here.

For the Thunder they have their usual duo of Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook going strong but for this game I’m looking for Serge Ibaka to have a big night. The Knicks frontcourt is oft injured and lacks the defensive toughness it was once known for. Ibaka is a beast in the paint and he will register an impressive double-double on this night for you.

The Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers square off in the third game of the day. For Miami they are clicking along and their big three are performing the way they should be; no surprises there. For the Lakers however, they are without Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash so someone will need to step up in their place.

Look to Pau Gasol to be the man once again for the Lakers. His hasn’t been a top performer for much of the season, but he is due for a breakout here and playing on his home court in front of a sellout crowd will propel his game. Slide Gasol into your roster for this game and reap the rewards.

The fourth game on the schedule has the Houston Rockets travelling into the Alamo to play the San Antonio Spurs. Aside from the big name players featured in this matchup, I’m going to throw a couple lesser known guys at you who can round out your roster quite nicely. For the Spurs look to Marco Belinelli as he has been given the starting nod over Danny Green and Kawhi Leonard. Belinelli had back-to-back solid games; however his last one against Toronto was a stinker. Look for Belinelli to bounce back nicely here and have another solid performance.

For the Rockets check out Chandler Parsons as he is having a breakout type year. Over Parsons’ last five games he is averaging 18.6 ppg, 6.2 rpg and 3.0 apg while shooting .567 from the field. Parsons could create some matchup difficulties for the Spurs as he is mobile, long and athletic. Watch for Parsons to have a solid slash line by the end of this game.  

The last game on the busy NBA Christmas day schedule sees the Los Angeles Clippers travel into Golden State to play the Warriors. For the Clippers they are chugging right along as many expected with Chris Paul having an MVP caliber year. Blake Griffin has also played well and more importantly he has stayed healthy.

I definitely like DeAndre Jordan in this matchup as the Warriors really lack that athletic big man who is strong enough to keep Jordan off the glass. Andrew Bogut is going to have his hands full on this night and that is even if he is able to play after suffering a sprained ankle a few nights ago.

For the Warriors they have their duelling pair of sharp shooting guards in Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson but it has been the play of David Lee of late that has been really eye catching. Lee has posted nine straight double-doubles and is an absolute fantasy stud at the moment. Lee will have a tough night for certain but I have to ride the hot hand going into this game and there is none hotter at the moment than Lee.