The Miami Heat will play the Cleveland Cavaliers and former Miami wing Max Strus on Wednesday.
Ahead of the matchup, Strus joked that he might go at Heat big man Bam Adebayo a couple of times in isolation.
Asked Max Strus if he'll try to go at Bam tonight in isolation. Strus laughed and said, "I might try him a couple of times. We’ll see.”
— Anthony Chiang (@Anthony_Chiang) November 22, 2023
The 27-year-old has been playing great basketball with his new team. Across 14 games with the Cavaliers so far this season, Strus is averaging 14.7 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game while shooting 43.5 percent from the field and 37.3 percent from behind the 3-point line.
He had one of his better all-around performances of the season to this point in Cleveland’s In-Season Tournament game against Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday. He scored 20 points while shooting 7-of-15 from the field and 5-of-10 from outside the 3-point arc in a team-high 44 minutes of playing time for the Cavaliers.
Strus also recorded five rebounds, six assists, two steals and one block in a game the Cavaliers went on to win by a score of 122-119.
The win improved Cleveland’s record to 8-6 on the season and 5-3 on the road. The Cavaliers are currently in eighth place in the Eastern Conference and have the same record as the New York Knicks.
The Heat, meanwhile, are fresh off an 18-point victory over DeMar DeRozan, Zach LaVine and the Chicago Bulls on Nov. 20 after the team ended Miami’s seven-game winning streak two days earlier.
Hot shooting from wing Duncan Robinson guided the team to a victory. The 29-year-old knocked down six 3-pointers in 30 minutes of play.
Adebayo also starred for the Heat. He finished with 23 points to go along with 11 rebounds, six assists and one steal.
Miami is only one game ahead of the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference standings entering Wednesday’s game, as the team owns a 9-5 record.
The Heat’s matchup against the Cavaliers projects to be an entertaining game between two teams who have been playing at high levels lately. Miami fans shouldn’t be surprised if the game goes down to the wire.
