Hometown Hoops Hero: Stagg alum Max Strus discusses his rise through the NBA, hitting big shots and his annual youth hoops camp

By Xavier Sanchez
Correspondent

A lot of changes have taken place for Max Strus during the past year.

While the Cleveland Cavaliers guard has played in an NBA Finals and been featured as No. 1 on ESPN SportsCenter’s “Top Plays,” among other noteworthy events, the Stagg alum is the same homegrown kid who grew up in Hickory Hills.

One summer ago, Strus joined the Cavaliers in a sign-and-trade deal with the Miami Heat — with whom he played in the 2023 NBA Finals — inking a four-year, $63 million deal. He enjoyed an unforgettable three seasons in South Beach, going from a two-way deal to seeing starting minutes and being a key contributor during multiple playoff runs.

As much as Strus enjoyed his time in Miami, Cleveland’s push to bring him to northeast Ohio was moving and something he will never forget, he said.

“It was nice to see that I was wanted by them, which I never had in my NBA career,” Strus said. “The ability to be sought after and wanted by another team was pretty unique and special to me.”

After signing with Cleveland, Cavs star guard Donovan Mitchell was the first to reach out to Strus. Soon afterward, he heard from the rest of his new teammates, which was comforting, he said.

“Everybody welcomed me with open arms,” he added.

Max Strus is showered with water in celebration of his game-winning 59-foot buzzer-beater last season against the Dallas Mavericks. Photo courtesy of Cleveland Cavaliers

Living the Dream
Strus’ path to being a starter in the NBA, playing in games on the biggest stage, hitting huge shots and earning tens of millions of dollars went through Boston (Summer League), Chicago (G-League and a brief stint with the Bulls) and, of course, Miami. He’s been on the move before, but the professionalism and class of his new team made the basketball side of the transition a breeze.

“Cleveland made it easy on me,” Strus said. “Being from the Midwest, it was easy to adjust. Getting back to the snow and seasons changing — and not just warm weather like Miami — that was the biggest adjustment.”

Playing on a competitive team competitive and having a chance at making a playoff run was important to Strus. During his time in Miami, he played in 43 playoff games including five NBA Finals games. Cleveland has a superstar in Mitchell and several other young talents including Jarett Allen, Darius Garland and Evan Mobley.

Adding Strus to the mix added one of the missing pieces. The Cavaliers saw an increase in three point attempts with the attention of Strus last season and made over 150 more as a team compared to 2022-2023.

Among Strus’ his season highlights was a 59-feet game-winner at the buzzer against the eventual Western Conference champion Dallas Mavericks on Feb 27. The heave over Mavs superstar guard Luka Doncic was that night’s top play on SportsCenter’s “Top Plays.”

“I knew from the minute it left my hands it was going in,” Strus said. 

The buzzer-beater capped one of Strus’ best games as a pro.  He sank five 3-pointers on five attempts in 67 seconds during the fourth quarter and finished with 21 points on seven treys.

After the win, social media notifications, calls and texts flooded Strus’ phone. 

“What came after that was wild,” he said. “My phone was blowing up. You saw it all over the place; ESPN, SportsCenter and pretty much everywhere you went, it was playing. Crazy to be the focal point of sports for one night.”

Strus recalled the following game, when the Cavs came to Chicago to play his hometown Bulls.

“When I walked out the tunnel, you could see the buzz from the tunnel and everyone saying the shot was unreal,” he said.

Max Strus chats with a youth last year during his annual summer basketball camp at Stagg. Photo by Xavier Sanchez

More to Come
To grow excitement for basketball in Paris, site of this year’s Summer Olympcis, the Cavaliers made a trip to France to play a game in January. Strus missed the game because of a knee strain, but made the trip to Europe and saw his team defeat Brooklyn. Although his first ever trip to Europe was mostly business, he sees himself going back some day.

“I need to get back out there to actually enjoy Europe,” he said. “From what I saw, I think I would like it a lot.”

Strus started 70 games for the Cavs last regular season as well as another 12 in the playoffs. He finished the season with per-game career-highs in several statistical categories including points (12.2), rebounds (4.8), assists (4), steals (.9) and minutes (32). He shot .351 from behind the arc. 

Another milestone was his first career triple-double in a loss to the Charlotte Hornets on the final day of the regular season.

Whether it is the buzzer-beater or the triple-double, Strus brushes those moments off as just doing what he can in the moment for his team. The bigger picture remains seeing his team succeed.

“There are a lot of talented players in the NBA,” he said. “Given the opportunity and the chance, they can have a big night. My role is to be a role player on a great team and I am going to do that to the best of my ability.”

Summer for Strus consists of spending time with his family and friends, training for the upcoming NBA season, and hosting his annual youth hoops camp at Stagg. The third annual Max Strus Basketball Camp will be held July 15-18, with all proceeds going to the Andrew Weishar Foundation.

“I look forward to it every single summer,” Strus said of the camp. “Year three we are looking to get bigger and better. As well as having a good time with the kids, we are making sure to do the right thing by donating a lot back to the Andrew Weishar Foundation.”

This fall, the Cavaliers will look a bit different with new head coach Kenny Atkinson. Strus has gotten a chance to speak to Atkinson and is excited and hopeful for the addition of a championship-winning coach.

“He seems great for the team, great for the organizations,” Strus said. “He’s someone that’s won a championship with the (Gold State) Warriors and has been a head coach in the NBA before. I think our team is excited and glad to have him on our side now.”

Max Strus (third from left) and Nic Weishar (fifth from left), a Marist graduate who played football at Notre Dame, hold a check for $10,000 to be donated to the Andrew Weishar Foundation at Strus’ 2023 youth basketball camp at Stagg. Photo by Xavier Sanchez