Cavs’ Max Strus Expected To Make Return On Friday

Max Strus is finally set to make his season debut for the Cavaliers, and it couldn’t come at a better time.

After a frustrating few months dealing with an ankle sprain and a hip injury, Strus is expected to hit the floor against the Washington Wizards on Friday, per ESPN’s Shams Charania.

This is big for the Cavs, who’ve managed to cruise to an NBA-best record of 21-4 without one of their key pieces, and now they get a solid contributor back into the mix.

Strus was a crucial part of Cleveland’s playoff run last year, starting in all 70 games he played and ranking second on the team in plus-minus. His 12.2 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game last season were a nice boost, especially with his ability to stretch the floor, hitting 35% of his three-pointers.

Coach Kenny Atkinson is already buzzing about Strus’ return, saying, “It’s like we signed a starting player to our team,” and acknowledging that this move shifts Cleveland’s dynamics.

But don’t expect Strus to just waltz back into his old starting spot right away. Given the injury history and a likely minutes restriction, the Cavs are going to take things slow and ease him back into action.

That said, Cleveland’s depth will take a hit in the short term, but that’s a good problem to have. Isaac Okoro (14 starts) and Dean Wade (9 starts) have done well in Strus’ absence, but now they’ll bolster an already-strong second unit.

The real question is how this shakes up the rotation when Strus is fully up to speed. For now, the Cavs continue to prove they can win with a bit of adversity, but once Strus gets integrated into Atkinson’s system, the Cavs’ ceiling could skyrocket — and the rest of the Eastern Conference should start to sweat even more.