A broken foot cost Max Strus most of last season, and the way he talks about this summer says the Clippers are getting a smarter version of him.
Max Strus broke his left foot in an offseason workout a year ago, and he has spent this summer making sure he does not push his body the same way again.
That is good news for the Los Angeles Clippers, who traded for him in August expecting a healthy shooter.
Strus talked about the change in a YouTube interview with the Link with JB channel, in comments transcribed by HoopsHype on Saturday.
"Last summer, I hit the ground running right away. I think I did a little bit too much. Is that why I got hurt? Maybe, maybe not. I don't know, I'm not going to play that game. I definitely took a different approach this summer and still motivated to come back stronger next year, put more skills in my game, but taking it easier on the body."
Why the Lighter Summer Makes Sense
Cleveland announced in August of 2025 that Strus had a Jones fracture in his left foot from offseason training, and he did not play until March 15.
He then played all 18 of Cleveland's playoff games at 9.6 points a night as the Cavaliers reached the Eastern Conference Finals.
Those are the numbers of a player still catching up, and the Clippers need the version of him who plays 70 games and hits open shots, and that version only exists if his body holds up.
The five team deal that brought him here cost only the draft rights to Ismael Kamagate and a 2027 second round pick, a cheap price for a career 37 percent three point shooter if he is available.
What the Clippers Are Actually Getting
Strus is on the final year of his contract at $16.66 million.
Lawrence Frank said when the trade closed that the Clippers plan to be highly competitive and that Strus would be a big part of it, and the front office made its expectations plain.
The best part of the fit is Darius Garland, his former teammate in Cleveland, who came to Los Angeles in the February trade that sent James Harden the other way.
Garland arrived with a toe injury and still put up 19.9 points and 6.4 assists in his 19 games with the Clippers while shooting 43.8 percent from three, and that is the point guard a shooter wants.
Where He Fits on a Reshuffled Roster
The league fined the Clippers $30 million on Wednesday, took five first round picks, and suspended Steve Ballmer for a year and Frank for six months.
The Kawhi Leonard trade to Toronto was still listed as pending as of Saturday night per Hoops Rumors.
Bennedict Mathurin left for New Orleans, Bradley Beal re-signed after playing six games last season, and Rui Hachimura signed in July.
The list of questions about what comes next is long, and none of it changes how much this team needs shooting around Garland.
Camp opens later this month and the season starts Oct. 20.
Strus resting his body is a small story next to everything else in Inglewood, but that small story decides whether a wing plays 12 games or 70.
