REPORT: Former Michigan State Star Could be Major NBA Trade Chip
The Los Angeles Lakers are in win-now mode with LeBron James likely approaching retirement, so that means their young players are expendable.
That includes former Michigan State Spartans star Max Christie, who is in the midst of a breakout years for the Lakers.
Zach Harper of The Athletic examined some of the top trade candidates around the NBA, and he feels that Christie could be on the move if the right deal comes along.
"The third-year wing for the Lakers has been a nice role player for much of this season," Harper wrote. "His shooting is pretty reliable, so he can still very much develop into a valuable rotation guy. He’s still not even 22 and has a good salary number to throw into a bigger deal. If the Lakers decide to make another roster swing outside of the Finney-Smith acquisition, I’d expect Christie and his friendly deal (three more years at $24.8 million total) to be included."
You can bet that rival teams will certainly be asking about Christie in any potential trade talks with Los Angeles.
The Michigan State product is averaging 8.2 points over 23.5 minutes per game on 45.4/36.1/87.0 shooting splits this season and has seen his role increase as the year has progressed.
Case in point, after recording 3.6 and 5.6 points a night in October and November, respectively, Christie bumped his average to 10 and 14.6 points per game in December and January.
Not only that, but the youngster boasts 52.1/39.3/85.7 shooting splits this month.
Christie is a terrific two-way talent who has become a rather integral piece in the Lakers' rotation, so they should certainly be careful when it comes to trading him.
The Arlington Heights, Il. native spent one season at East Lansing in 2021-22, tallying 9.3 points and 3.5 rebounds across 30.8 minutes per game.
He decided to enter the NBA Draft after that campaign and was selected by Los Angeles in the second round.
Had Christie returned to school for one more year, he may very well have been a lottery pick in 2023, but he bet on himself, and his decision seems to have paid off.
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