Lakers News: Insider Excited About Max Christie's Sophomore Season
The Los Angeles Lakers have built a reputation of being both shrewd drafters and good at developing that talent once it gets into their ranks.
A recent example of that would be Austin Reaves.
Although he wasn't drafted by LA, he signed a two-way contract with the team, plied his trade in the G League, got his chance in the rotation before exploding in year two. His role ranged from playing as LA's sixth man to starting for them in the playoffs, where he was a key factor in the Lakers' run to the Western Conference Finals. That led to him signing a four-year, $53 million contract, and he'll surely play a big role in the future.
Another candidate to experience a sophomore jump is Max Christie, who played well in limited minutes, and The Ringer's J. Kyle Mann is very high on the Michigan State alum going into next season.
"Max Christie was one of my guys in the last draft cycle—I was higher on him coming out of Michigan State than anyone I knew. I liked his athletic pop, I thought he had the gait of an NBA wing, and I really believed in his shooting. After the 35th pick played just 12.5 minutes per game and averaged 3.1 points per game as a rookie, there were definitely times when I thought, “Maybe you swung a little hard on that one, pal.” However, this past weekend had me thinking the swing was adequate and maybe not hard enough." (via J. Kyle Mann of The Ringer)
Christie had a great Summer League -- as did Reaves back in the day -- to the tune of garnering All Summer League Second-Team honors.
He showed a more polished shot and quality defense, something that he was already advanced in during his time in college.
If Christie can continue to build on his solid early offseason, a jump in his second year is definitely in the cards, especially as he figures to get more playing time this season.
It likely won't be an ascension to the degree of Reaves -- that'd be almost unfair expectations to put on him -- but he can certainly become a valued member of the Lakers' rotation.
