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[Saba Sports News] Max Strus fired off a motivational text to his Cleveland Cavaliers teammates on Monday — a message that, in hindsight, might’ve been better left unsent.
With the Cavaliers facing elimination in Game 5 of their Eastern Conference semifinal series against the Indiana Pacers, Strus — a six-year veteran with Finals experience — tried to rally the team. According to TNT’s Jared Greenberg, Strus sent a serious, motivational message to every teammate the day before the game, urging them to “show up for work.”
Ironically, it was Strus himself who failed to deliver.
In Tuesday’s 114-105 loss at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse, the sharpshooter went scoreless, missing all nine of his shot attempts in 26 minutes. His cold performance was a key factor in Cleveland’s downfall, especially given his importance as the team’s top perimeter threat.
Heading into Game 5, Strus had been one of Cleveland’s steadiest contributors in the series, averaging 15.3 points over the first four games. But Indiana’s defense smothered him, and his shot disappeared when the Cavaliers needed it most.
The loss was further compounded by Donovan Mitchell’s three consecutive missed free throws during crunch time, effectively sealing the Pacers’ 4-1 series win and sending them to a second straight Eastern Conference Finals.
For Strus, the text message intended to spark a response ended up serving as unfortunate irony.