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NEW YORK, N.Y. - Nearly two months have passed since the San Antonio Spurs collected their championship rings and began their title defence.The NBA season may have opened Oct. 28, but Christmas is the real coming-out party.Footballs popularity leaves little room for other sports in the fall. Its enough to make some believe the unofficial opener should be the real opening day, as it was in 2011 following the lockout.There could be an argument, and a strong argument, to starting our season later and do it on Christmas Day and go into the summer, ABC analyst Jeff Van Gundy said. I think there could be a strong argument to do that and avoid a lot of the NFL and college football season.Football is quiet on Christmas, so the NBA loads up with a five-game schedule, highlighted by LeBron James return to Miami. Thats followed on ABC by San Antonio hosting Oklahoma City.Washington visits New York in the ESPN opener, and because Christmas falls on a Thursday, TNT has its usual night doubleheader and Inside the NBA studio show. Then Chicago hosts the Los Angeles Lakers before Golden State takes on the Los Angeles Clippers.Van Gundy preferred the Christmas schedule when it was just a couple of games. But Mark Jackson, working the Cavaliers-Heat game with Van Gundy and Mike Breen, is all for five.If it was watered down and youre trying to stretch five, thats different, he said. But I think weve got good teams with quality matchups, and if Im a fan I like the idea of basketball being played all day.The challenge of the basketball marathon for Breen is to inform the new audience without insulting fans who have been watching since around Halloween.I dont go in thinking all right, Ive got to broadcast towards these people who havent watched a single NBA game, he said. But at the same time you cant ignore the fact that some people might not be up to speed on certain things.___Here are some things to know about the five Christmas games:WIZARDS AT KNICKS: Jackson coached Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson in Golden State, and Washingtons John Wall and Bradley Beal are in that class. They complement one another extremely well, he said. Beals shooting ability, Walls ability to create, to score and to play with great pace. They wont have a problem worrying about their backcourt for a long time.CAVALIERS AT HEAT: The Cavs have had some of the same struggles Miami did in James first season in Florida, mostly because of Clevelands defence. You want to win big in this league, youre going to commit to that end, the defensive end of the floor, Van Gundy said, and some games they have and other games theyve really struggled.THUNDER AT SPURS: Van Gundy coached an eighth-seeded Knicks team to the NBA Finals, and Oklahoma City could be forced to make a similar run after injuries to Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Oklahoma City, no matter where you start them, if theyre in the tournament, they have a chance, Van Gundy said.LAKERS AT BULLS: Kobe Bryant remains must-see TV in his record 16th Christmas appearance. Kobe Bryant is as compelling as an NBA player whos ever played. ... you just never know in any given game when he steps on the floor what hes capable of doing, Breen said.WARRIORS AT CLIPPERS: Their nasty Christmas matchup last year was followed by a seven-game playoff series. I think its two tough teams, two very successful teams, two teams that dont like each other and two teams thats extremely exciting to watch, Jackson said. So obviously its a developing rivalry, but I wouldnt call it a rivalry.___STAT LINE OF THE WEEK: Tim Duncan, Spurs: 48 minutes, then 43 in consecutive triple-overtime games. The 38-year-old forward hadnt logged 40-plus minutes in consecutive games since Dec. 25-27, 2008, according to STATS. Larry Murphy Jersey . 15 in Hamburg. The fight was originally slated for Sept. 6 but had to be postponed after Klitschko tore a bicep in sparring and was forced to miss four weeks of training. Paul Coffey Jersey . And follow TSN.ca right through Wednesdays 3pm et trade deadline for all the updates. Blue line help for Red Wings? In addition to what he reported in Insider Trading, TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun wrote on ESPN. http://www.penguinsauthenticofficial.com...en-jersey/.FIFA said its appeals panel ruled the case not admissible.The former U.S. Attorney had objected to ethics judge Joachim Eckerts summary of the World Cup bid investigation, claiming numerous materially incomplete and erroneous representations of his work. Paul Martin Jersey . The agreement comes a little more than one week after the video game manufacturer agreed to a $40 million settlement in a similar but separate case, bringing the total payout planned for athletes to $60 million, said Steve Berman, an attorney for the plaintiffs, and the NCAA. Tom Barrasso Jersey . The Toronto Blue Jays star won his second consecutive Hank Aaron Award as the most outstanding offensive performer in the AL on Monday after votes by fans and a panel of Hall of Famers were tallied.AUGUSTA, Ga. -- The first full day at the Masters turned out to be a short one Monday. Augusta National was open for only two hours because of storms, still enough time for a few players to see some of the changes to the golf course -- even though this was supposed to be a year with really no change at all. The ice storm in February that led to the demise of the famous Eisenhower Tree also cost the club countless other trees, giving Augusta a slightly different look. Instead of a forest of Georgia pines, players can see from the 10th fairway all the way across to the 15th fairway. Players couldnt help but notice the number of trees missing from the right side of the narrow, claustrophobic seventh fairway. "You dont feel like youre going down a bowling alley as much," Brandt Snedeker said, his hair wet from wearing a visor in the rain. The club lost thousands of limbs that were damaged from the ice storm, so many that Jimmy Walker said he saw workers up in the trees with chain saws when he came to Augusta a few weeks ago for a practice round. "I havent played here a ton, so I kind of got the feeling you could see down through the golf course a little bit better than you used to be able," Walker said. "I dont know if thats a good thing or a bad thing." Some things never change. The course was starting to burst with colour. The greens already had a tinge of yellow to them. And there was a buzz about the Masters, even without Tiger Woods around for the first time in 20 years because of recent back surgery. Still, nothing stood out quite like the 17th hole. Masters champion Adam Scott always assumed the 440-yard par 4 was a dogleg left because of the 65-foot high loblolly pine that jutted out from the left side about 220 yards from the tee, forcing shots to the right except for the big hitters who could take it over the tree. Mike Weir is not one of the big hitters, so when asked how he found the 17th hole on Monday, the Canadian smiled. "Much friendlier," he said. "I was playing with Jason Day. For him, it doesnt matter. He hits it high and long enough. For me, I had to hit around it. It was probably the toughest drive on the course. Now, its much easier." It was amazing to him to walk up the fairway and see a patch of pine straw where the tree once stood so proud and tall. Weir and several other players assumed that Augusta National would have another pine placed their before the Masters.dddddddddddd Maybe next year. But not this week. The tree was such a treasure -- named after former President Dwight D. Eisenhower, a club member who hit into the tree far too often -- that it was taken off site for storage. The club will determine later what do with the trunk and what limbs remain. But what a difference it has made already. "If the tree was there, I would have hit it yesterday," said Patrick Reed, who arrived on the weekend and already got in two practice rounds. "It was cold. It was a little into the wind and I hit it down the left side. I knew exactly where the tree was, and I probably would have caught the top half of that tree and would have been underneath it." "First three times I played this course it was there, and it made that hole really hard." Snedeker played on Sunday with Masters rookie Harris English and said he pulled his tee shot on the 17th. Any other year, he would have hit the tree. "It was perfect," he said. "Its still not an easy tee shot. But its not as hard as it used to be." The rest of the course should be the same as usual. The Masters can set up the course any way it likes -- difficult for scoring, or birdies that make cheers reverberate. It has trended toward excitement over the last several years, such as when Charl Schwartzel won with four straight birdies at the end, or even last year when Scott and Angel Cabrera in the last two groups each made birdie on the 18th to force a playoff. The biggest change is likely to be the guy in a red shirt. Woods won his fourth green jacket in 2005, though he usually kept it interesting, and always kept fans guessing. His back surgery last week means the worlds No. 1 player will be out of golf until the summer, and out of the Masters for the first time in his career. "Without Tiger here, its a different feel," Snedeker said. "Its a different event. He does a great job of bringing energy and bringing fans out that we dont usually get." Those fans had to leave early on Monday. By lunch, the course was closed for good. Masters chairman Billy Payne said they would get a refund in May, and they were guaranteed a chance to get practice round tickets for next year. Woods likely will be back by then. And odds are, there will be more trees. ' ' '