Though a lot of the eye on the Dallas Mavericks within the wake of the Luka Doncic commerce has been unfavourable, Max Christie has confirmed to be a priceless addition to the staff — a lot in order that there was hypothesis he would supplant Klay Thompson within the beginning lineup.
In an elevated function since being acquired by Dallas, Christie has excelled, averaging 17.3 factors, 5.2 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.2 steals whereas capturing 48.6% from the sector, 45.5% on 3-pointers, and 82.6% on the free-throw line. Thompson has equally executed properly since Christie’s arrival; he has averaged 17.2 factors and is capturing 44.7% from the sector and 40.5% from past the arc over the past 5 video games he is performed.
On account of Christie’s breakout and his relative youth — Christie is 13 years youthful than Thompson — NBA insider Tim Bontemps stated he thinks Christie will ultimately begin over Thompson when the Mavericks’ collective well being improves. Nevertheless, NBA reporter Tim McMahon disagrees.
“I believe you can also make a case for why [Christie starting over Thompson] would make sense, however there’s an understanding of how vital that standing as a starter is to Klay Thompson, particularly after having it briefly taken away from him final yr with the Warriors,” McMahon stated on the Hoop Collective podcast. “Now, Klay Thompson’s a 25-minutes-per-game participant. I believe he’ll proceed to try this as a starter. I believe Max Christie will probably be closing video games over him — Klay may shut video games — but it surely’s a really case-by-case foundation, and it has been for some time.”
Associated Dallas Mavericks InformationArticle continues beneath
Earlier than the commerce to the Mavericks, Christie was an occasional starter for the Lakers, who drafted him within the second spherical out of Michigan State in 2022. Christie averaged 25.1 minutes per sport and began just a little over half of the Lakers’ video games, averaging 8.5 factors and a couple of.7 rebounds within the course of.
As McMahon laid out, Thompson being changed within the beginning lineup may trigger a problem for the veteran, who got here off of the bench for the primary time in a decade for a part of final season, his ultimate with the Golden State Warriors. Thompson was vocal about how troublesome it was for him to regulate to not beginning and the way he needed to stay a starter.
Within the offseason, Thompson departed the Warriors after 13 seasons for the Mavericks, who signed him to a three-year, $50 million contract.