* On ABC: Cavs vs. Warriors (3 ET)

The headliner on Christmas Day is an easy one: Cavs-Warriors. They’ve contested the last three NBA Finals and are unquestionably the rock-star teams in the league, chock full of stars, who are once again the favorites to capture their conference titles and go for four in a row.

Six months ago the Warriors won the championship rubber match and of course that didn’t sit well with LeBron James. He had a chance to reflect on that series, which was basically decided by Kevin Durant, the best player on the floor for the majority of those games. Durant hit a 3-pointer in the final moments of Game 3 that swung the series solidly in Golden State’s favor and the rest was history.

Joe Vardon of the Plain Dealer caught up with James about that shot and that series and LeBron was pretty frank:

James said “I wish I could have that play over again.

“I was a little bit too far off of him,” James said. “I still got a great contest but I was still too far off of him. So, I wish I could have that play back but you can’t. But it was a big-time moment for him, obviously. They played exceptionally well last year in the Finals. He was definitely the difference maker.”

Cavs coach Tyronn Lue said he watched film of the Finals to get the game plan ready for Christmas, but not Game 3. He watched how Durant shredded the Cavs in Game 1, won 113-91 by the Warriors. Durant scored 23 points with six dunks before halftime.

“We just gave KD too many easy dunks and layups right in the middle of the floor, trying to get to the shooters with Steph and Klay (Thompson) and he took advantage of that,” Lue said. “When you’ve got a great player like that, can’t give him easy baskets like that to start the game.”

The Christmas Day meeting, the third straight between these teams by the way, will be missing a key figure in Stephen Curry, and of course there’s nothing major at stake besides early season bragging rights. Still, the Cavs are surging in the East after some November stumbles and could be leading the conference before 2018 kicks in. Meanwhile, the Warriors are using this time without Curry to sample different lineups and try not to wear out Durant.

Until a few other teams prove otherwise, namely the Celtics and Raptors and Spurs and especially the Rockets, this Warriors-Cavs grudge match appears on course to happen again next June. By then, maybe the Cavs will figure out a way to keep Durant in check. Maybe that should be their main goal on Christmas, besides winning the game. Never too early to send a message.