NBA Breaking News: Holiday Cheers Come Early as NBA and Players End Lockout

The NBA and the players finally reached a tentative agreement early on the morning of Saturday, November 26th. This agreement comes during a time when many thought the NBA season would be lost entirely.

This news is extremely unexpected, as the players were all but certain to take the NBA to court, citing a slew of unfair bargaining charges along with other offenses.

In layman's terms, the NBA and players finally put pride aside and decided to make something happen. For an agreement of this magnitude, both sides had to make sacrifices from its original demands.

As of now, the NBA plans on beginning the shortened NBA season on Christmas day. The league and players will only sacrifice 16 games, which is an incredible number considering the reports merely a week ago.

December 9th is the day that NBA training camp and free agency opens, while actual games are played just two weeks after that point.

While it all seems way different now, once the NBA starts, everything will be seemingly back to normal. Instead of talking about either side being too afraid to take action, we can start making comments about LeBron James' mountain-high ego or Dirk Nowitzki's incredible clutch factor.

Unsurprisingly, the NBA season starts on Christmas day, featuring three incredible matchups.

First, is a battle between Ray Allen and the Boston Celtics against Carmelo Anthony and the New York Knicks.

Second, is a heated rematch between the NBA champion Dallas Mavericks and the runner-up Miami Heat.

To cap off an incredible opening schedule, the Los Angeles Lakers will host Derrick Rose's Chicago Bulls.

Get excited NBA fans. The wait is finally over. It's game time baby!