Last night, the Lakers were left with a huge void as Anthony Davis was absent from the roster. But LeBron James unleashed a can of whooping on the Trail Blazers. Surprisingly, he wasn’t alone. Joining the cavalry was Max Christie, who teamed up with LeBron to put on a career-high performance. And head coach JJ Redick couldn’t have been more proud. Understandably, the post-game presser was JJ’s place of serenading Christie. But it was also a reminder to Bronny James.

With a bright smile on his face, Redick joined the podium after the Lakers’ big 114-106 win against the Trail Blazers. While LeBron’s 38-3-8 stat line was nothing new, Max’s career-high points became a key topic of discussion. When asked what the head coach had noticed about the former two-way guard that allowed him to deliver such a high-level performance, Redick recalled an instance from his former podcast. “I would say fans not gonna be happy about this, but I’m gonna reference Mind the Game. And, in the very first episode, I talked about what I think a good basketball player is,” he said.

According to Redick’s definition, “It’s not a bag. It’s love of the game. It’s the care factor. It’s competitiveness. It’s basketball IQ.” These are the qualities he claimed to have observed in the 21-year-old. “Being around Max for most of the summer, that stuff jumps off the charts.” And once he identified those characteristics, the HC explained, “As a coach, you just wanna pour into it.” That’s exactly what he did. But, the praise didn’t stop there.

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There was also a message for the rookies too. “It’s not to say that I haven’t held him (Max) accountable because I have, but I’m also willing to live with some growth mistakes from him. Just like I am with Dalton and, you know, Bronny’s in the rotation, I’ll be the same way.”

In fact, he clarified it was for all the young Lakers. He further added, “You gotta be willing to live with some mistakes and allow them to grow. But, you know, if you have those characteristics, it makes me wanna pour into you.”

Bronny, as we all know, is currently developing his skills with the LA Lakers’ G League affiliate, the South Bay Lakers, and occasionally pays a visit to the NBA team whenever called. Redick mentioned that he would focus on enhancing Bronny’s existing qualities as he did with Max, given that all of Redick’s boxes are ticked with Bronny’s potential. But as of now, the 20-year-old is some way short of being NBA-ready.

Coming back to the main man of Thursday night, Max Christie had a blast turning into a scorer when the Lakers were in desperate need.

Max Christie steals the spotlight with his career-high performance

The Trail Blazers believed they had an advantage with Anthony Davis sidelined due to his left ankle sprain, so their focus was entirely on LeBron James. However, they didn’t consider that Max Christie was pushing hard to prove himself worthy of a starting role. That’s when he stepped up and dropped a marvelous performance.

Keeping one eye on the defense as he always does, Max Christie went on a mission, scoring a second-game-high and of course his career-high 28 points. The 6-foot-5 guard hit 9-of-16 shots from the field and showcased his skills from beyond the arc as well, with an impressive 5-of-9 shooting accuracy. Even by the end of the final quarter, his shots kept coming. And by the end of the night, he also added 3 rebounds and 2 assists to his name.

Max’s overall numbers (7.8 points, 2.3 rebounds, 1.3 assists) haven’t been that remarkable, but the way he performed against the Portland side shows great promise. If he continues playing with the same passion, he’ll surely be able to add more to his stats by the end of the season.