3 Lakers whose stock has plummeted this preseason

By Jason Reed | Oct 10, 2022

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - OCTOBER 06: Head coach Darvin Ham of the Los Angeles Lakers walks to the court for a preseason game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at T-Mobile Arena on October 06, 2022 in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Timberwolves defeated the Lakers 114-99. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

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2. Max Christie

To be fair, Max Christie didn’t have that much stock as a second-round rookie heading into the preseason — or at least he should not have. There seemed to be this expectation from Lakers fans that Christie would be able to contribute to the Lakers right away in his first season.

Los Angeles has had a great eye for talent in recent years and they have had later draft picks come into the league and produce right away. Heck, Austin Reaves was an undrafted free agent last season that came in and earned NBA minutes.

The difference with Christie that a lot of fans were overlooking is his age. Reaves was 23 when he came into the league, which is a massive difference from being 19. Christie was never going to be able to produce in his rookie season at 19 years old, which is something we warned about here at Lake Show Life.

Christie has looked exactly like what he is: a 19-year-old second-round pick that has never played with NBA players before. It is very obvious that he is not ready for a consistent role in the rotation and would benefit immensely from developing on the South Bay Lakers.

The hope is that he will get there eventually and in 2-3 years he can be an impactful role player for Los Angeles. But with him being so green, and the team already having so many guards, there really is no purpose for him this season.

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