The Lakers took what I call the Khawi approach with Christie. They drafted a player with a good work ethic who can at worst be a 3&D player in the future. He has a good frame, defense is already nba level, and his stroke looks good. He also has a few tools in his arsenal that hint at the promise of potential stardom some day. However, worst case scenario for him is a 3&d wing which is a hot commodity in the NBA.
On the other hand the lakers took a swing for the fences with THT. They took a player with a massive upside based on his length, age, and skillset, but his floor is pretty much worthless. He’s hard to fit in with other players because he can’t shoot, and he’s not quite good enough to be that primary ball handler his game is suited for.
Even though THT is still young and can definitely still improve, I think Christie is the better prospect. Did anyone notice how much muscle that kid put on over the summer? He’s fn jacked look at his arms!! Imo that’s why his shot looked terrible in the summer. He’s probably been hitting them weights hard af knowing his frame is his weakness at the moment and he’s not likely to get much playing time this season. Smart Imo. Spend the season learning the NBA and bulking up to play the 2-3. That sweet stroke will start falling!
I feel like he will be ready to contribute as soon as next year. He’s smart, a hard worker, and already has nba level defense. Heck, we may get meaningful minutes from him by the end of this season! He don’t play like a rookie! _________________ “like I never left”
THT may be approaching the point where there's no point in talking about his potential or upside, if he isn't there already. If what he's shown so far turns out to be what he is, he's nothing more than a deep rotation guy.
I don't think there's much you can say about Christie at this point except, we'll see.
I think most teams have a guy like Christie or THT. A project that fans can fantasize about, but if they're not on your team you don't think about them at all.
THT may be approaching the point where there's no point in talking about his potential or upside, if he isn't there already. If what he's shown so far turns out to be what he is, he's nothing more than a deep rotation guy.
I don't think there's much you can say about Christie at this point except, we'll see.
I think most teams have a guy like Christie or THT. A project that fans can fantasize about, but if they're not on your team you don't think about them at all.
I felt like THT showed a lot of progress from when he was drafted until training camp in his second season. He went from a guy who looked like a project, to a guy who showed some promise in limited action in the bubble, to a guy who looked like a real steal in camp heading into his sophomore year.
Teams adjusted to him though, and the lack of a jump shot, and inconsistencies on offense have capped his game. He still has great length, decent athleticism, some playmaking abilities. There is still upside there. But he hasn't shown improvement the past two seasons, he seems to have regressed. He shot 30% from three as a rookie, followed it up with 28%, then 27%, and is shooting 18.5% this season. Unless he can get his jumper into at least the low 30s, he's going to struggle.
Reaves on the other hand has a lower upside. People like to compare him to Caruso as an undrafted white guy, who turns out to be unexpectedly good. But those two are very different guys. Caruso was a good athlete. Reaves is not. He plays with a lot of effort though, and has a more polished offensive game. By all reports, he put in a lot of work this summer. His jumper, at least so far, looks improved. His upside is capped, but if I had to guess on who will have the better career, I'd probably vote on Reaves at this point.
Joined: 10 Apr 2001 Posts: 65135 Location: Orange County, CA
Posted: Wed Nov 02, 2022 8:21 am Post subject:
THT made considerable shooting improvements at all ranges inside the arc.
Christie is a different player, more based on perimeter shooting and defense vs 1v1 ball-handling/shot creation.
Quote:
Reaves on the other hand has a lower upside.
Disagree here. Too many people link upside to athleticism, but it's really based on decision-making/physicality and court vision first, to complement the rest of the three level skill set.
One guy was basically a ready NBA rotation player as a rookie, while you're waiting on others to really establish themselves to that point, consitently. _________________ Resident Car Nut.
I don't know how much time teams actually invest in teaching these young guys what to do and when. I do think young players need attention, explanations and have to have a learning mentality themselves. Otherwise, all that potential could very well remain as that.
It's not about calling out a player in public (that's showboating), it's about teaching him. Now if you have a talent (young or old) that doesn't listen, he's probably a guy you don't want on your team; it's a team sport which makes the outsider (a good coach) have the inside track on what you need to do to create synergy.
There are some guys out there with great individual stats while their team is falling flat. I used to observe that from a far with Russ, Melo and others.
When it comes to winning, there is certainly a need for talent but also for basics to be put in place.
Right now THT looks like a slasher, Christie is a question mark while Reaves does a little bit of everything on the court. Talent wise? Depends what holes your team needs to fill.
Ok I know, I'm preaching to the converted, LOL. _________________ Lakers need to build a freaking team !
THT has a better chance of putting up numbers (likely on bad teams that put the ball in his hands off the bench) but Christie has a clearer projection as a contributor on a competitive team, eventually.
i really like christie's body type, he seems to be a prototype 2 that can shoot and defend. ironically, i see some Doug Christie in him, maybe some KCP or Danny Green at the top end which would be excellent for a 2nd rounder.
Seems to me THT's ideal role requires him to be on ball, but the quality of his play doesn't support that, at least yet. I mean, you wouldn't take the ball out of LeBron, Reaves, Russell or Davis' hands to let THT cook.
For Christie, success comes in locking down his position defensively, hitting the long ball, and having enough ability to attack closeouts to keep the defense honest. It's a far better fit for the Lakers. _________________ Austin Reaves keeps his game tight, like Kobe Bryant on game night.
Joined: 14 Apr 2001 Posts: 144474 Location: The Gold Coast
Posted: Sat Sep 30, 2023 5:06 pm Post subject:
matigol wrote:
THT had moe potential when he was drafted but didn't make any progress except with his body
Maybe he'll never be more than a talent
A comparison at this stage makes no sense bc Max hasn't played much
I can agree with this, we have several years of seeing what THT could do but virtually no data on Christie. _________________ RIP mom. 11-21-1933 to 6-14-2023.
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