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Max Strus Sends Cavs Fans Message After Losing In Second Round

Originally posted on Hoops Wire | By Ashish Mathur | Last updated May 22, 2025 11:00 AM ET

The Cleveland Cavaliers were the No. 1 seed in the East this year. They swept the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs and appeared well on their way to competing for the championship for the first time since 2018.

However, the Indiana Pacers defeated the Cavaliers in the second round in five games. Indiana won Games 1, 2 and 5 in Cleveland, with Tyrese Haliburton hitting the game-winning 3 in Game 2.

On Wednesday, Cavaliers guard Max Strus sent a message to Cleveland fans on Instagram. The former Heat shooting guard said he and his teammates “owe you so much more.”

#Cavs Max Strus has a message for Cleveland via his IG:

“We owe you so much more.” pic.twitter.com/A4iXxV6Ewc

— Grant Puskar (@grant_puskar_) May 21, 2025

This is a massive offseason for Koby Altman. Will he continue to build around Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, Jarrett Allen and Darius Garland or make a blockbuster trade?

Some believe Garland and/or Allen need to be traded for the Cavaliers to become serious title contenders, but multiple reports have stated that Altman intends to keep the core together.

Strus, who made the 2023 NBA Finals with the Heat, told local reporters during exit interviews that the Cavaliers need to get mentally and physically tougher.

“To me, we’ve got to get tougher,” Strus said. “Physically and mentally. We can talk about it, but we have to be about it.”

The Cavaliers should not have lost Game 2. They had that game in the bag. Mental lapses on both ends of the court helped the Pacers steal that game in Cleveland.

“We can sit here and talk about it all we want, but until we do it, no one is going to give us that respect,” Strus said. “Nobody is going to talk about our regular season, as they shouldn’t.”

This article first appeared on Hoops Wire and was syndicated with permission.

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