Max Strus will be out when the Cleveland Cavaliers to start the 2025-26 season.
The team announced that the sweet-shooting guard underwent surgery on his left foot and is expected to miss three to four months.
The injury is a Jones fracture, which affects the fifth metatarsal, a bone that connects the pinky toe to the base of the foot.
Strus started 37 of the 50 games he played last season, averaging 9.4 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game on 44.2% shooting from the floor and 38.6% shooting from beyond the arc.
He emerged as a key contributor in helping Cavaliers achieve a 64-18 record in the regular season — the team’s highest win total since the 2008-09 season when they won 66 games.
Despite earning the top playoff seed in the East, Cleveland was eliminated in the second round by the eventual NBA finalists, the Indiana Pacers, in five games.
That marked the third straight year the Cavs failed to advance past the East semis, despite winning at least 48 games in each of the past three seasons.
Earlier, Strus signed a four-year, $63 million deal with Cavaliers in 2023 after a three-year stint with the Miami Heat.
Cleveland will open the 2025-26 campaign on the road against the New York Knicks on Thursday, October 23 (PH time).
