The Hawks visit Sydney on Xmas Day

Neither team needs any motivation to get up for these matches, but with both the Hawks and Kings coming off disappointing losses, the intent from both squads will be visible from the jump.

The Hawks enter Christmas Day fresh from being jumped early against one of the league’s best outfits in Tasmania, while the Kings have won just two of their last five matches and haven’t won at home since mid-November.

Sydney has come out on top in the first two meetings of the Freeway Series in NBL24, but the Hawks side they will face today is a very different proposition to that of the early rounds.

The Christmas wish for Coach Tatum will be simple: lockdown on the defensive side of the ball and be relentless on the glass, both of which were severely lacking in Saturday’s loss to the JackJumpers.

The offence will again run through the capable hands of Froling, Clark, and Harvey, and the challenge will be thrown down to the guard rotation of Robinson, Hickey, and Bayles to minimise the impact of Kings star guard Jaylen Adams.

They don’t come any bigger than this, and with a national audience tuning in to ESPN and Channel 10, a W would be the perfect stocking stuffer for our fans and members of Hawk Nation.

Opposition Watch

The Kings sit third on the competition standings with a nine-win seven loss record.

It has been a roller coaster for Coach Abdelfattah as the Kings look to find their championship pedigree of previous seasons.

Jaylen Adams is again in MVP contention, while the Aussie contingent of Jaylin Galloway, Alex Toohey, Jordi Hunter, and Jonah Bolden showed glimpses in the first half of the season.

New imports DJ Hogg and Denzel Valentine have been quiet of late, but the Hawks scout will have their names high on the whiteboard as ones to watch.

Where to Watch

Catch all the action Live from 7:30 pm AEDT on ESPN via Kayo and Channel 10.