Celtics fittingly set for Christmas rivalry clash with Giannis, hated Heat

On Good Morning America, the NBA began its 2026-27 regular-season schedule reveal. As news of opening night and Christmas contests became public knowledge, it came as a bit of a surprise to see the league pit the Miami Heat against the Boston Celtics on Dec. 25 at TD Garden.

That date represents the marquee event on the NBA's regular-season calendar. It is a crown jewel that requires a slate befitting that description.

That's why the juiciest potential storyline was to wait for that to mark the return of Jaylen Brown to the parquet he called home for a decade -- outside of a potential preseason cameo.

Fortunately for C's fans, they won't have to wait all the way until December to welcome Brown back for regular-season competition. However, that date has not yet been revealed. The NBA's full 2026-27 regular-season schedule release starts on Thursday at 3 PM ET on NBA Today on ESPN2.

Celtics-Heat renew rivalry on Christmas

From 2020-2023, these two venerable franchises squared off in three of the four Eastern Conference Finals. Miami was to Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown what Boston was to LeBron James and the Detroit Pistons were in the '80s to Michael Jordan.

The Celtics also got the better of the Heat in the opening round of the 2023-24 NBA Playoffs, en route to capturing Banner 18. The fact that these two familiar foes haven't seen each other in the last two postseasons kept this potential Christmas clash from being front of mind.

Many fixated on the Philadelphia 76ers. Some wondered if it might be the New York Knicks. And the Los Angeles Lakers and the chance to showcase one of the most iconic rivalries in sports on such a significant date on the Association's calendar will always generate at least some speculation.

Instead, LeBron James will make his return to Los Angeles on Christmas, with the rest of the slate as follows:

Yet this matchup against the team from South Beach features two sides at the center of one of this offseason's most significant plot lines: Both wanted to emerge as the winner of the Giannis Antetokounmpo sweepstakes.

Boston held firm, not extending beyond an offer of Brown and a pair of first-round picks. Conversely, the Heat, who sat in a different position, with a dire need to pull off this blockbuster, gutted most of their roster to get it done.

It was reinvigorating for one side; for the other, it was the initial embers that signaled the Celtics were ready to move on from one of the most successful eras in team history.

It's fitting that the Heat, a prominently featured antagonist throughout Tatum and Brown's time together, are also part of the moment when the clock struck midnight on their partnership. And that this is who Boston will welcome to TD Garden when the Celtics take to the parquet on Christmas.

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