Christie was a consensus five-star recruit and one of the top players in the 2021 class, according to major recruiting services.[9] On July 7, 2020, he committed to playing college basketball for Michigan State over offers from Duke, Villanova and Ohio State, among others.[10]
Maryland vs. Michigan State Men's Basketball 2022 Blackout
On January 5, 2022, Christie scored a season-high 21 points in a 79–67 win against Nebraska.[11] As a freshman, he averaged 9.3 points and 3.5 rebounds per game and was named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team.[12] On April 1, 2022, Christie declared for the 2022 NBA draft while maintaining his college eligibility[13] and on May 16 announced he would hire an agent and remain in the draft.[14]
Professional career
Los Angeles Lakers / South Bay Lakers (2022–2025)
2022-23
Christie was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers in the second round of the 2022 NBA draft with the 35th overall pick. Christie joined the Lakers' 2022 NBA Summer League roster.[15] In his Summer League debut, Christie scored five points and nine rebounds in a 100–66 California Classic win against the Miami Heat.[16] On July 8, 2022, Christie signed his rookie scale contract with the Lakers.[17] During his rookie season, he scored a season-high 14 points on 6 of 8 shooting and 2 of 3 made threes on January 10 in a 122-109 loss to the Denver Nuggets.[18] He was assigned to the South Bay Lakers of the NBA G League on March 8, 2023.[19] He was recalled by the Los Angeles Lakers from South Bay two days later.[20] For the season, he averaged 3.1 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 1 assist a game on 41.5% 2s and 41.9% shooting on 1.5 threes per game.[21] During the playoffs, in 3.7 minutes per game, he scored 1.4 points per game on 25% shooting from three and 50% shooting from two.[22]
2023-24
On December 9, 2023, Christie and the Lakers won the inaugural season of the NBA In-Season Tournament.[23] Max tied his career high with 14 points twice during the '23-'24, first against the Miami Heat during a 110-96 loss on January 3rd,[24] and secondly against the Phoenix Suns eight days later during a 127-109 loss.[25] For the season, his minutes went up to 14.1 from the previous season but his three-point percentage dipped slightly on slightly more attempts while most of his numbers remained steady. [21]
2024-25
Christie re-signed with the Lakers on a four-year, $32 million deal on July 2, 2024.[26][27] When the Lakers hired head coach JJ Redick in the summer of 2024, the two got together to work out in Las Vegas ahead of the start of the '24-'25 season.[28] When the season started, he shot only 25% in October and 31% in November on three-point shots.[29] However, from the time he became a starter, his numbers improved, and he shot over 45% on threes over the next eight games while averaging 10.6 point a game over that stretch.[30]. Over the next 17 games, he continued this caliber of play, shooting nearly 41% from three and averaging 10.9 points per game. [30]. Overall for the Lakers in the 2024-25 season, Christie shot 37% on three during 25 minutes a game - nearly double that of the previous season, while averaging 8.5 points per game.[30]. Throughout the season, he earned high praise for his defense from Lakers' stars such as LeBron James[31][32]Anthony Davis,[33]Austin Reaves[34], as well as coach Redick.[32] During the first 2 1/2 months of the season, he increased his career-high in points for a game three times, with 15 on December 13 against Minnesota,[35] 17 against Detroit 10 days later,[36] and then with 28 against Portland on January 2, 2025.[37]
On February 2, 2025, Christie was traded alongside Anthony Davis and a 2029 first-round pick to the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Luka Dončić, Maxi Kleber and Markieff Morris. The Mavericks additionally traded a 2025 second-round pick to the Utah Jazz, who also acquired Jalen Hood-Schifino and a 2025 second-round pick from the Lakers.[38] Over the remainder of the season he increased his scoring to 11.2 points per game while shooting 36.4% on threes and playing 30 minutes a game.[21] Playing for the Mavs during the 2024-2025 season, his season-high was 23.[39]
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