The Nets vs. Lakers live stream is here, and this Christmas Day NBA game features a seriously depleted roster flying into Los Angeles. And on the other meta-level of this NBA live stream, we will look at the naming ceremony for the newly renamed Crypto.com Arena, as the Staples Center will no longer be named after Friday (December 24).

Let's start with some good news for the Brooklyn team. James Harden has cleared NBA Health & Protocol. So have Paul Millsap and Jevon Carter. That's all the good news.

The Nets now have LaMarcus Aldridge, DeAndre Bembry, Bruce Brown, Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, James Johnson, and Daylon Sharp, plus rookies David Duke Jr. and Kesler Edwards, Cameron Thomas, a whopping 10 players are in the Covid-19 protocol.

On the other side of the court, there is a little good news for Los Angeles: the gap between LeBron James and Kobe Bryant in the NBA's all-time scoring standings has opened up to 12 points. Bryant has 395 points. Bryant's 395 points came in 16 Christmas games, LeBron's 16th. James, however, sparked controversy when he shared a meme comparing a cold, the flu, and Covid-19 to the three Spidermen with the caption, "Help me out folks." He certainly needs help on this one.

If you've had to leave your "bubble" or suffered the dreaded local blackout and can't watch the Nets vs. Lakers live stream on cable, you're not out of luck. With a virtual private network, or VPN, you can pretend you are surfing the web from your hometown (or anywhere else not hit by a power outage) and access the same streaming services you are already paying for.

Not sure which VPN is right for you? We tested a variety of services and chose ExpressVPN as the best VPN overall. They offer great speed and excellent customer service. However, there are other VPN options out there. Here are our top picks.

In the US, Nets vs. Lakers will be broadcast on ESPN, with tip-off today (December 25) at 8pm ET/5pm ET.

If you are already disconnected and don't have a cable package, you can watch this game on Sling TV and FuboTV. But while we love Fubo for many sports, it doesn't have TNT, which is a big no-no for the NBA season.

Both ESPN and TNT are included in the $35 Sling Orange package; ABC games are simulcast on ESPN3, Sling Orange includes TNT, ESPN, and ESPN3, and the Sports Extras Pack includes NBA TV.

Sling and Fubo are two of our picks for our best streaming services list, but since these games are broadcast on ESPN3, we pick Sling here despite the lack of ABC (although you can get it on one of the best TV antennas).

Not all NBA games are available to UK basketball fans, but Sky Sports has them! The Nets vs. Lakers game will be broadcast on Sky Sports Mix at 1:00 a.m. ET.

NBA League Pass is also available in the UK.

Canadian hoops fans can catch the Nets vs. Lakers live stream on TSN, which can be added to cable packages. The game will be broadcast on TSN4.

NBA League Pass is also available in Canada.