Former Michigan State Stars to Clash on Christmas Day
Former Michigan State stars Draymond Green and Max Christie will play in a Christmas Day showdown as the Golden State Warriors host the Los Angeles Lakers.
The NBA's best slate of games is typically Christmas Day and former Michigan State at the center of that is definitely a good thing for the program.
Being a part of the Warriors dynasty, Green has had his fair share of performances on Christmas Day over the past decade.
In 2015, Green scored 22 points and 15 rebounds against the Cleveland Cavaliers in an NBA Finals rematch.
Then, in 2022, after a highly contested exchange on social media, Green’s Warriors hosted the Memphis Grizzlies, led by Jaren Jackson Jr., another former Spartan. Green facilitated well, dishing 13 assists in the Warriors' 123-109 victory.
This will be an important game for Green, as last year he was ineligible to play in the Warriors' last Christmas Day game since he was serving a 12-game suspension for his involvement in an altercation with Phoenix Suns veteran center Jusuf Nurkic.
Most fans will be excited to see Lakers forward LeBron James and Warriors guard Steph Curry continue their storied rivalry. This will be the fifth time this decade that the two stars meet and it will be the first time since 2018.
Christie has benefited from being teammates with James, as this is his third season in the NBA and the Lakers have played on Christmas Day in all of them.
However, the former Spartan forward hasn't had that many chances to make his mark on the league’s biggest stage.
In Christie’s first NBA season, the rookie played five minutes in a loss to the Dallas Mavericks where he scored two points.
Last Christmas, when the Lakers played against the Boston Celtics, Christie received a Coaches' Decision DNP.
Christie has gotten more playing time in his third season. During the past month, Lakers coach J.J. Reddick has bumped Christie’s minutes up to over 27 minutes per game.
The Lakers and Warriors are neck and neck in the standings, hunting for a spot in the top six that would solidify a first-round matchup in the highly competitive Western Conference.
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