Max Strus Bio
Max Strus (born March 28, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A small forward and shooting guard listed at 6 feet 5 inches and 215 pounds, Strus began his NBA career in 2019 after going undrafted and has built a reputation as a reliable perimeter shooter.
Strus first gained league attention with the Miami Heat, where his outside shooting helped the franchise reach the 2023 NBA Finals. He later signed a four-year contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he continues to compete as a rotation player and veteran floor spacer.
Early Life and Background
Max Strus was born in Hickory Hills, Illinois, a suburb on the southwest side of Chicago, and is of Slovenian and German descent. He grew up in a competitive sports household, with parents who both played college athletics. His father, John Strus, pitched for the Eastern Illinois college baseball team, while his mother, Debra Strus, played basketball and volleyball at DePaul University and was later inducted into the DePaul Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000.
Strus attended Amos Alonzo Stagg High School in nearby Palos Hills, where he played both baseball and basketball. Entering his sophomore year at 5 feet 9 inches, he experienced a late growth spurt that left him at 6 feet 5 inches by the end of high school. As a senior, Strus averaged 19 points and 9 rebounds per game and was named the area player of the year by The Reporter, All-Southwest Suburban Conference, All-Area by the SouthtownStar, and third team All-State. After receiving only one Division I offer from Chicago State, Strus chose Division II Lewis University, where his older brother Marty had played.
Path to Professional Basketball
Strus began his college career at Lewis University, where he made an immediate impact. As a freshman he averaged 13.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per game while starting all 31 games for the Flyers and earning second-team All-Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) honors. The following year he lifted his scoring average to 20.2 points, set school records for free throws made (167) and single-season points (666), and recorded a 52-point performance against Northwood University on November 24, 2015. Across two seasons at Lewis, Strus scored 1,078 points before deciding to transfer to a Division I program.
Strus moved to DePaul University, where he had to sit out a season under NCAA transfer rules before taking the floor for the Blue Demons. After returning, he led the team in scoring at 16.8 points per game and made 81 three-pointers, the second-highest single-season total in program history. In his final season, Strus averaged 20.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 0.9 steals per game, was named second-team All-Big East, and became only the second DePaul player ever to score 700 points in a season, trailing only Mark Aguirre.
Max Strus Career
Early Career (2019–2020)
After going unselected in the 2019 NBA Draft, Strus joined the Boston Celtics’ Summer League roster and averaged 9.8 points per game while shooting 45 percent from three-point range. He signed a two-way contract with the Celtics on July 22, 2019, but was later released before the regular season as Boston reshuffled its roster to make room for Tacko Fall.
Strus signed a two-way contract with his hometown Chicago Bulls on October 22, 2019, and made his NBA debut on November 22 against the Miami Heat, scoring five points in five minutes of a 116-108 loss. His rookie season was cut short on December 23 when the Bulls announced that he had torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during a G League game with the Windy City Bulls, ruling him out for 8-to-12 months. He finished the year with five total NBA points and averaged 18.2 points in 13 games with Windy City.
Miami Heat Breakthrough (2020–2023)
Strus signed a training camp deal with the Miami Heat on November 30, 2020, and was converted to a two-way contract later that December. He made an early statement on February 11, 2021, erupting for 21 points on 5-of-8 shooting from deep against the Houston Rockets, the kind of performance that helped him earn a longer look in South Florida.
On August 6, 2021, Strus signed a two-year contract worth $3.5 million to remain with the Heat. His most memorable regular-season moment came on April 14, 2023, when he scored 31 points against the Chicago Bulls to send Miami into the playoffs. He and Jimmy Butler combined for 62 points in a 102-91 win, and Strus continued his hot shooting into the postseason with 19 points in an Eastern Conference Semifinals Game 3 win over the New York Knicks. The run carried Miami to the 2023 NBA Finals, where Strus struggled against the Denver Nuggets, averaging just 5.8 points on 23 percent shooting as the Heat fell in five games.
Cleveland Cavaliers Era (2023–Present)
On July 6, 2023, Strus signed a four-year, $63 million contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers as part of a sign-and-trade agreement. He wasted no time introducing himself, scoring 27 points with seven three-pointers made and 12 rebounds in a 114-113 season-opening win over the Brooklyn Nets on October 25, a debut three-point total that set a new franchise record.
One of his most dramatic moments came on February 27, 2024, against the Dallas Mavericks, when Strus hit five three-pointers in the final 67 seconds, including a buzzer-beater from 59 feet to win 121-119. The shot was the second-longest game-winning buzzer-beater tracked since 1979 and made him only the fourth player in 25 years to connect on five threes in the last four minutes of a game.
Driving Style and Strengths
Strus is best known as a movement shooter who thrives when he can come off screens or attack closeouts on the perimeter. His work with Heat and Cavaliers shooting coaches has produced a quick, repeatable release, and he complements his outside shot with active rebounding for his position and a willingness to defend multiple spots on the wing.
Notable Events and Milestones
From his 52-point outburst at Lewis University to his 27-point Cavaliers debut and his five-three barrage against Dallas, Strus has built a career on sudden scoring spikes. He reached the 2023 NBA Finals with Miami and has set multiple franchise and school three-point records along the way.
Max Strus Career Wins
Max Strus has never been a league scoring champion, but his career has been built on timely shots and key victories rather than trophy counts. His biggest team success came with the Miami Heat’s run to the 2023 NBA Finals, and he has collected individual postseason honors at both the Division II and Big East levels.
NBA Highlights
Strus’s signature NBA wins include the 31-point performance that lifted Miami past the Chicago Bulls in the 2023 play-in round and his seven-three-point Cavaliers debut against Brooklyn on October 25, 2023. He also punctuated the 2023-24 regular season with his late flurry of threes to beat Dallas, one of the most dramatic endings of his career.
Other Wins and Performances
At the college level, Strus helped Lewis post winning seasons and earned first-team All-GLVC recognition in 2016 after averaging 20.2 points. At DePaul, he helped the Blue Demons finish 19-17 in his final year, good enough for a College Basketball Invitational bid.
Max Strus Family
Family Background and Basketball Lineage
Basketball runs deep in the Strus family. His mother, Debra Strus, played at DePaul and was inducted into the DePaul Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000. His father, John Strus, was a college baseball pitcher at Eastern Illinois, and his older brother, Marty Strus, played at Lewis University and later became the head coach at Amos Alonzo Stagg High School. His older sister, Maggie, played volleyball at the University of Illinois at Chicago and has served as an assistant volleyball coach at DePaul.
Personal Life
Strus is of Slovenian and German descent and grew up in the Chicago suburb of Hickory Hills, Illinois. He is a United States citizen and lists his longtime residence near Cleveland after joining the Cavaliers in 2023.
2025 Season Performance
The 2025 portion of the NBA calendar began with the Cavaliers announcing on October 19, 2024, that Strus would miss the start of the season because of a right ankle sprain suffered during preseason individual workouts. The injury followed two preseason games he had already missed with a right hip contusion, and Cleveland held him out for roughly six weeks before bringing him back into the rotation.
Strus returned to make 50 appearances with 37 starts during the 2024-25 campaign, averaging 9.4 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 3.2 assists as a steady perimeter piece for the Cavaliers. His shooting and veteran presence gave Cleveland flexibility in the backcourt alongside its young core.
The outlook for 2025 turned difficult on August 26, 2025, when the Cavaliers announced that Strus would miss three to four months after undergoing surgery to repair a Jones fracture in his left foot. He did not return to action until March 15, 2026, when he scored 24 points with eight rebounds and one assist in a 130-120 loss to the Dallas Mavericks, a performance that suggested he was rounding back into form for the stretch run.
