Our exit interview series on the 2025 Clippers continues with Cam Christie, the Clippers’ second-round pick from the 2024 NBA Draft.

Basic Information

Height: 6’5

Weight: 190 pounds

Position: Shooting Guard

Age: 19

Years in NBA: 1

Key NBA Stats: 1.4 points, 0.9 rebounds, 0.5 assists, and 0.4 steals in 4.5 minutes per game across 13 games played (0 starts) on 29.2/15.4/50.0 (1.0 3PA, 0.3 FTA) shooting splits (34.9 True Shooting)

Key G-League Stats: 16.4 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 1.0 steals, and 1.4 turnovers in 31.2 minutes per game across 40 games played (all starts) on 40.2/30.2/80.5 (7.5 3PA, 2.1 FTA) shooting splits (53.8 True Shooting)

Expectations

Drafted at just 18 years old in the middle of the second round to a veteran team, the expectations for Cam Christie in his rookie season were non-existent. It would have shocked almost everyone if he’d played a real role in the NBA in his first year. Instead, the common expectation was that Christie would play just about the entirety of his first professional campaign in the G-League with the San Diego Clippers, checking into the NBA only when the G-League was off or the Clippers were desperately short on personnel.

Reality

Reality met expectations for Cam, who appeared for just 59 minutes in the NBA, nearly 18 of which came in a blowout loss to the Timberwolves on December 4. There’s basically nothing worth taking away from his brief appearances in the NBA – the sample size was far too small and entirely in garbage time.

His G-League stats, however, offer a far greater sample size. Cam’s raw production numbers were pretty good for a 19-year-old playing in a professional league against mostly older and more physically developed players. In particular, the rebounding, assist, and steal stats are all solid enough and indicative of Cam’s ability to impact the game outside of scoring. The shooting numbers are a tad disappointing – while Cam’s jumpshot is a thing of beauty, it did not fall on an exceptionally high rate. That said, 7.5 three pointers attempted from NBA distance is a promising sign of Cam’s ability to take threes at a high volume, and the free throw shooting is indicative of good touch.

Overall, Cam’s rookie year in the G-League was not an outstanding one, but it wasn’t one rife for concern either. Based on numbers alone (I watched maybe two G-League games), it’s probably around a B grade.

Future with Clippers

Christie has three more seasons left on the four-year deal he signed last summer, but the third of those seasons is non-guaranteed and the fourth is a team option. While Cam’s rookie year wasn’t bad by any means, it was also not promising enough to put him in “trade chip” status, and he almost certainly has more value to the Clippers than any other team.

I would therefore expect Cam to be on the Clippers next year. The question is how much the roster changes around him. If the Clippers move on from a bunch of their veterans, it’s possible that Christie is, if not in the rotation, at least on the fringes of it. If the Clippers mostly run their 2025 team back, Cam might be in for another year primarily in the G-League. Cam is young enough and under Clippers’ control for long enough that a second season in Oceanside is not inconceivable, though I’m sure fans would like to see him get more NBA run. Regardless, I think we can expect him in the organization next year.

2025 Clippers Exit Interviews: Cam Christie
Robert Flom

Our player preview series for the 2025 Clippers continues with Cam Christie, the Clippers’ second-round rookie.

Basic Information

Height: 6’6”

Weight: 190 pounds

Position: Shooting Guard

Age: 19

Years in NBA: Rookie

Key Stats: Averaged 11.3 points, 3.6 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 0.6 steals in 30.1 minutes per game across 33 games in his freshman season at the University of Minnesota on 40.3/39.1/79.1 shooting splits (5.4 3PA and 2.0 FTA) for 54.6 True Shooting

Contract Status: Signed a four-year, $7.9M deal in July with a salary of $1.1M in year one

Expectations

There should be zero expectations for Christie, the youngest player the Clippers have drafted in three years, this season. The Clippers are not the championship contender of yore, but they are still a team that wants to win, has lots of depth everywhere but center, and is willing to take it slow with rookies. With no need on the depth chart for Cam, and his status as a very young second-round rookie, odds are tat he is not going to be in the rotation barring numerous injuries, several players disappointing ahead of him, or a monster training camp.

Strengths

Right now, Cam Christie probably just has one NBA-level strength, which is his three-point shooting. He was a sniper at Minnesota, possessing both volume, accuracy, and variety in three-point shooting. With his 6’6 frame and clean shooting form, there seems to be little doubt that Christie will be a good, maybe even great shooter in the NBA. He certainly looked comfortable shooting from NBA range in Summer League, even though the results were a bit mixed (as one might expect on a small sample size). He’s also a good enough shooter to probably command respect from defenses in the NBA from day one if he does play rotation minutes, which is unusual for a rookie.

For longer term strengths, Christie has good size and length for a shooting guard, which might allow him to guard up or down a position as he gains strength. While not a dynamite athlete, he has some pop, which should allow him to contribute as a cutter and as a runner in transition.

Weaknesses

Christie’s primary weakness at this point, on both ends, is strength. He simply does not have the size and muscle to bang with NBA players on defense, and will get pushed around by larger and stronger players. On offense, the lack of strength forces him to stop short rather than getting all the way to the rim, and will prohibit him from finishing inside at a high efficiency as well. Fortunately, this is something he can work on!

It’s hard to pinpoint on-court weaknesses for Christie since he hasn’t played in the NBA yet, but I’d just say overall outside of shooting he’s a raw-ish prospect. He wasn’t great defensively in college, though he does have the size and length to be solid on that end in time. Christie showed some flashes of attacking closeouts in college, but his handle and passing are a way away from him being any type of creator at the NBA level. He’s very young, so none of this is an indictment – but he was the 44^th pick for a reason.

Summary

This is probably going to be almost a redshirt year for Cam, who needs to bulk up, get acclimated to professional-level play, and learn how the Clippers want him to operate. It would be stunning if he played much for the big-league team, instead seeming like a lock for a lot of play in San Diego with a bit of garbage time mixed in. For those invested in Cam Christie’s development, heavy monitoring of the G-League team will probably be required.

Clippers 2024-2025 Player Preview: Cam Christie
Robert Flom