East Notes: Cavs, Max Strus, Heat, Kevin Love, Pacers

Cavaliers

Coach JB Bickerstaff is committed to guard/forward Max Strus and it’s unlikely that the Cavs will shake up the starting lineup before the end of the season, per Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com.

Strus’ scoring has been inconsistent, but his effort and defense have been solid, at worst, and he’s considered a strong fit next to the likes of Donovan Mitchell, Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley.

While Strus’ shooting numbers have declined, he remains a threat from the perimeter and requires constant attention from opposing defenses, Fedor noted.

• Odds that the Cavs add someone via the buyout market remain “incredibly low,” Fedor wrote. Cleveland is being upfront with prospective signees by making it clear that there isn’t a whole lot of playing time available (if any). Bickerstaff is already trying to find minutes for a roster that goes 10-12 deep.
• That said, the Cavs would love to add another shooter off the bench. Names such as free agent guard/forward Joe Harris and shooting guard Furkan Korkmaz could be names to watch, per Fedor.

Heat

Power forward Kevin Love said he wasn’t sure what would happen last year when he agreed to a buyout with the Cavs. Then he ended up with the Heat and back in the Finals.

“I think the thing that’s most gratifying to me is that going to a new location or a new team or a new organization, new city, especially at this stage in your career, you never know what’s going to happen,” he said, via Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel. “And after that run last year, I got so much fun out of it, as well as guys I’ll have relationships for life, bigger than basketball. My daughter was born on June 10th, right after Game 4 (of the Finals). We bought a new house in Miami. It’s almost like we got to start our life in a place where we have a lot of friends and a lot of great teammates and people in the organization who have become family in a pretty quick time, so it has been a very happy year.”

Along with adding veteran play on the floor, Love has assumed a leadership role in the locker room.

“I feel comfortable here as well as understanding what everyone, and I mean everybody, wants, and just being an absolutely bubbly guy and personality to be around,” he said, via Winderman. “I think from that perspective, yes, I feel like I’m in a good spot.

“I certainly want to embrace that leadership role, because I can kind of extend an olive branch and meet guys halfway and just relate to guys on different levels, whether they be (Nikola Jovic) or be it (Bam Adebayo) or be it (Tyler Herro) or (Jimmy Butler). There’s a way to get through to each guy that I do feel like I have the capability of doing.”

Pacers

Star guard Tyrese Haliburton didn’t emerge as the 3-point champion in front of the home fans on Saturday, but he intends to keep trying.

“I think I’m going to just keep coming back until they don’t allow me to, and eventually I’m going to win one,” he said, via Dustin Dopirak of the Indianapolis Star.

• No less than Pacers legend Reggie Miller said he believes Halburton will eventually lead Indiana to a championship someday. Our Ashish Mathur has the full story here.
• Center Myles Turner has been mentioned in trade rumors for the past six or seven years … yet has remained with the Pacers the entire time. Turner discussed his feelings about that very subject right here.