Max Strus Leaves Big Shoes to Fill, But Cleveland Has a Plan As Reunion Forms in LA

Darius Garland & Max Strus are reuniting in LA and excited over it.

Sep 28, 2026; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Clippers forward Max Strus (31) during media day at Intuit Dome. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

There’s a bit of a Cleveland reunion happening in Los Angeles. Already coached by former Cavs coach Tyronn Lue, there are two players who opened last season in The Land that are now playing in LA for the Clippers.

Darius Garland was acquired for James Harden at the deadline in an effort to help them get younger. And this offseason, they went all in on deepening things at the wing position. They acquired Brandon Ingram as the centerpiece of a deal for Kawhi Leonard. They also jumped into the Cavs-Nuggets Peyton Watson trade to land versatile forward Max Strus. 

As the two prepare to reunite in LA, there is palpable excitement on one end, and a need to replace the energy on the other.

Darius Garland Excited to Have Max Strus Back

Darius Garland, asked at Clippers Media Day about what it was like to have Max Strus as a teammate again, expressed great excitement.

“Yeah that’s my dog. Max is one of my favorite teammates I have had in my eight years in the league, so I’m super excited about getting back and reuniting with him. Really good floor spacer that can shoot the p**s out of the ball.”

Darius Garland is ecstatic about playing with Max Strus again, per @Gmona48

He says he’s “one of his favorite teammates of all-time”

Excited to see these two share the court in a Clippers uniform 🙌🏼 pic.twitter.com/Wi7sPOo88r

— SleeperClippers (@SleeperClippers) September 28, 2026

The two had plenty of assists to one another during their days with the Cavs, and will be bringing plenty of excitement to LA. With Brandon Ingram likely out to begin the year and Bennedict Mathurin joining the Pelicans, there will be plenty of minutes available for Strus. His energy will indeed be missed in Cleveland, but the Clippers have got themselves an absolute gamer.

The wing will provide fantastic energy alongside of Derrick Jones Jr. and Kris Dunn on the wings. The Strus-Garland connection should remain as strong as it was before.

Replacing Max Strus In Cleveland

Trading Max Strus could not have been an easy decision for the Cavs this past offseason. He was beloved by the team and city alike, making a huge impact on winning during his three seasons there. From the 20-10 debut against the Nets to the full-court winner against the Mavs, there were a number of electric moments.

Injuries cost him the first 67 games of last season and it was clear just how much he was missed. And the only thing he wasn’t bringing to the team was height. Acquiring the athletic, tall-and-long Peyton Watson helped them to get bigger. This will improve the defense, and also provide more lineup versatility than they could have before.

James Harden is doing a fine job in there for Darius Garland, so there are no issues there. Each guard brings what their respective team needs, so the swap is good in the short-term on each end. And again, as for that wing position, Cleveland should be just fine with Watson.

He may not shoot threes at the same volume as Strus, but Watson was a 40% 3PT guy a season ago, and bringing anything close to that will surely suffice. 

The new additions on each end will impact winning as both squads try to defy the expectations that pundits have for them and soar to higher than expected heights.