Ahead of the Los Angeles Lakers training camp starting next week, general manager Rob Pelinka and new head coach JJ Redick spoke with the media on Wednesday. They answered several questions about what happened or did not happen throughout the NBA offseason and shared some thoughts on the players they have heading into the 2024-25 NBA season.
Although the bulk of the questions were focused on the team’s inability to get much done over the summer regarding improving the roster, some questions had to do with some of the young players on the squad and what the longtime general manager and first-time head coach foresee for those promising youngsters.
One of the moves the Lakers made this summer was securing the long-term future of guard Max Christie. Los Angeles re-signed Christie to a four-year deal, even though he hasn’t seen the floor much during his stint with the Lakers up to this point.
Obviously, the team thinks highly of Christie by signing him to a new long-term deal, which Pelinka spoke about. It seems Redick has plans for the 21-year-old out of Michigan State, which motivated the team to make re-signing him a priority.
“A lot of it had to do with JJ’s vision for how this team is gonna play,” Pelinka said. “Some of the things he has talked about, which are supported by our data science team and the coaches upstairs that vigorously go through, is making adjustments to things like crashing and trying to win the extra possession game. I think Max Christie is sort of the prototype player of a 3-and-D wing that can defend, pick up or pressure full-court, which is another thing JJ has talked about in his system. He can make corner 3s, I think, at a high clip, and he’s very long and athletic. So I think he will be a guy that’s gonna help us win the extra possession game by crashing. So just the way he plays, the way he’s built really align with JJ’s philosophy. And then just his character. He’s in the gym every day; he is probably one of the hardest workers on our team. So those are things we’re gonna lean into when we choose people that are gonna be part of our program.”
Following Pelinka’s thoughts on Christie, Redick shared the role he envisions for the young guard. He believes players like the former Spartans star are needed to impact winning.
Redick also reveals that Jalen Hood-Schifino and Christie have made significant strides in their development this summer.
“I would add to that, I think to win now in today’s NBA, you need seven or eight players that really impact winning,” Redick said. “And that doesn’t mean seven or eight superstars that need the ball in their hands. Max Christie is gonna be a guy in his career who has a high-level impact on winning for a number of those reasons that Rob talked about. And he’s been fully bought into all of the player development stuff. Jalen Hood-Schifino has been really bought in, these guys have improved significantly over the last two months. So really excited to see them compete in training camp and preseason.”
This is likely a good sign that Christie could see a significant boost in playing time under Redick during the upcoming season. Redick sees something in Christie that former Lakers head coach Darvin Ham didn’t, making the 2024-25 campaign an important one for the 21-year-old.
Max Christie happy to re-sign with Lakers
Heading into the NBA offseason, Max Christie’s future in a Los Angeles Lakers uniform seemed up in the air, and it was unclear what the franchise intended to do with the young guard.
Although there was uncertainty heading into NBA free agency, the Lakers brass didn’t hesitate to re-sign him to a four-year deal, making the talented guard a happy man because he didn’t want to play anywhere else.
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