Matt York / AP

Suns forward Grant Hill, center, tries to score between Heat defenders Alonzo Mourning and Udonis Haslem on Dec. 10.

Bob Cousy, who played in 10 games on Dec. 25 during his illustrious career, said those games were business as usual.

“There was no recognition,” said Cousy, who also noted that Celtics coach Red Auerbach didn’t even buy the team dinner. “The hotels were empty. We were out there by ourselves. The purpose was to play the game, that’s it. Get in town, and get out. The situation has changed dramatically now. The players have so much more control.”

Of course, the NBA has delivered plenty of holiday joy throughout the years.

In 1961, a doubleheader at Madison Square Garden started late when the Chicago Packers failed to arrive on time. It didn’t end until Dec. 26. Wilt Chamberlain, in the midst of his record-setting scoring-season (50.4 average), poured in 59 points, but his Philadelphia Warriors lost to the host New York Knicks, 136-135, in two overtimes. The game ended at 12:16 a.m.

The Knicks were also involved in three consecutive memorable games in the 1980s. First, Bernard King scored a Christmas Day record 60 points, including 40 in the first half, against the New Jersey Nets in 1984. Every King performance was a special treat.

“Bernard was unstoppable for two years,” recalled Knicks assistant coach Richie Adubato. “He was one of the greatest, if not the greatest, scoring small forwards in the league.”

The following year, rookie Patrick Ewing scored 18 of his 32 points in the fourth quarter in leading the Knicks back from a 25-point second-half deficit to beat the Celtics.

In 1986, Ewing was at it again as his buzzer-beating jumper defeated the Chicago Bulls.

In 1990, Michael Jordan’s 37 points overwhelmed the Detroit Pistons in the Bulls’ double-digit victory over the two-time defending NBA champions. In fact, it was an early indicator that a changing of the guard was on the way. Five months later, Chicago swept Detroit in the Eastern finals and went on to win its first of three consecutive titles.

In recent years, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and Dwyane Wade have shared the stage. Following O’Neal’s trade to the Miami Heat in the summer of 2004, the Heat and Lakers squared off three years in a row. Miami won all three.

O’Neal, Wade and Bryant all will be in action again this year, along with Steve Nash, LeBron James, and young stars Brandon Roy and Kevin Durant.

Adubato laughed as he recalled how the game’s outcome often affected his family’s overall mood.

“My kids knew that if we won we got streak,” he said. “If we lost we had soup. They were always rooting for us to win. It wouldn’t be a happy Christmas if we didn’t win.”

The challenge of juggling family and basketball on Dec. 25 hasn’t changed. Hill understands where the game fits into the bigger picture — for the NBA and the holiday.

“Yeah, it’s inconvenient, but it’s an honor that I have the opportunity to play in this league,” he said. “And on Christmas Day, with the whole world enjoying their afternoon and watching basketball, you have a chance to try and entertain people on a special day. I look at it as an honor to be playing.”

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