Tom Izzo hasn't had a ton of one-and-done players at Michigan State but one of the most surprising one-year rentals was Max Christie.
The former five-star recruit played well during his freshman year with the Spartans but it didn't feel like it was good enough to leave for the NBA right away. But he did and the Lakers took a chance at him early in the second round at No. 35 overall.
Through his first two seasons with the Lakers, he played minimally off the bench. He averaged 3.1 points on 42 percent shooting as a freshman but 4.2 points on 43 percent shooting in year two. But he's having the best year of his career thus far in year three, averaging seven more minutes per game than he did a season ago while starting seven games (he had 10 total starts in his first two years combined). He's currently averaging 6.6 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.1 assists while shooting 43 percent from the floor -- all career-highs.
On Monday, he faced the Detroit Pistons and had the best game of his NBA career, scoring wise, notching 17 points. He also had two steals and a rebound, making 6-of-10 shots from the floor in 33 minutes. Although the Lakers lost, this could be springboard to bigger games.
Christie has been starting for the past couple of weeks and he's been playing well. He's in the middle of the most productive month of his career, averaging 9.3 points and 3.5 rebounds, making 42 percent of his threes.
While we all wish he stayed in East Lansing longer, it's nice to see him finally carve out a role in the NBA.