Miami Heat free agent sharpshooter Max Strus reportedly has been linked to the Orlando Magic, Indiana Pacers and Detroit Pistons this offseason.
According to Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer, both Strus and Boston Celtics free agent forward Grant Williams could be in play for those three teams.
“Signing [Harrison] Barnes could hurt other leading Indiana targets, such as Williams and Heat swingman Max Strus, sources said, who could also both be in play for Orlando and Detroit, depending on what the Pistons achieve,” Fischer wrote.
The Magic showed some serious promise in the 2022-23 season, making a late push for the play-in tournament in the Eastern Conference. After starting the season with a 5-20 record, Orlando went 29-28 the rest of the regular season.
Indiana and Detroit are both in rebuilding phases, but they could be looking to find a solid role player like Strus or Williams to help them compete in the 2023-24 season. Indiana was in the play-in picture in the East for a good chunk of the 2022-23 season.
Both Strus and Williams could give any of these teams options to stretch the floor next season.
Strus is a career 37.1 percent shooter from beyond the arc, and he has played a big role for Miami the last two seasons, averaging 26.1 minutes per game.
Williams, who was a first-round pick by Boston in the 2019 NBA Draft, averaged a career-high 8.1 points per game in the 2022-23 season. He has improved greatly as a shooter over the last two seasons, shooting 40.3 percent from beyond the arc during that stretch.
The Heat certainly would love to have Strus back on the team, but it’s possible they let him walk if another team is willing to overpay for the sharpshooter’s services. Miami is already locked into a hefty contract for another shooter in Duncan Robinson.
Williams’ future in Boston could be in question now that the team has traded for big man Kristaps Porzingis.
The frontcourt for Boston is crowded with Porzingis, Al Horford and Robert Williams. That doesn’t even take into account Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, who patrol the forward spots during the season.
Once free agency opens, both Williams and Strus should remain coveted assets because of their abilities to stretch the floor and experiences in playoff settings.
