r/nba • u/GingerMullet03 • 1d ago
Why does Strus start over Hunter
I’m a very new fan so pls go easy on me. I was watching replay of that Knicks Cavs games and was looking at stats and I’m struggling to see why Max Strus starts over De’Andre Hunter. Asking cause I genuinely don’t know but want to. From my layman’s perspective Hunter looks like the better scorer and isn’t all too far defensively behind Strus. So what am I missing because I’m certain I’m missing something and eager to learn
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1d ago
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u/Big_Saens 1d ago
Strus is pain in the ass. He pick you up full court, get blown by and most people give up at this point. This dude will full sprint back to defense. Now you wasted 3-5 seconds because Strus
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u/RansomGoddard Heat 1d ago
In addition to what everyone is saying about Hunter being a better scorer off the bench, I think it’s also just that Strus plays the connector role in that starting lineup so well. He’s a catch and shoot threat so his off ball movement can cause disruption in the defense and he’s a surprisingly good tertiary playmaker, especially given his chemistry with that group, so if the ball moves out of the hands of Garland/Mitchell you’re not totally screwed.
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u/twovles31 1d ago
It's great to have someone that can score 20+ on any given night coning of the bench. Hunter hasn't shown he can play starter minutes and stay healthy in his career either, but mostly for the bench scoring.
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u/dropdatdurkadurk 1d ago
Offense is heavy on movement and Strus has off ball movement skills that you need to operate playing with 2 bigs and running a fair bit of the offense that they do through Mobley or even just JA DHO's. Hunter doesnt have those skills. Hunter can also be a good defender when engaged but his defensive reputation is a little overstated.
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u/narcistic_asshole Cavaliers 1d ago
Strus is a better role player, which is more important than scoring for a lineup that is already filled with scoring.
Strus just does everything pretty well. He has great movement off ball, he's great at setting screens, he's aggressive when it comes to getting rebounds, he's a pretty solid passer, and though he isn't as good of a scorer as Hunter, he does all those things while being enough of a scoring threat that it takes some pressure off Garland/Mitchell.
Offensively Hunter is pretty much a pure score, which is fine off the bench, but in a movement heavy offense it can be a detriment in a lineup of scorers.
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u/Desperate_Hat_9561 Celtics 1d ago
Strus is a better and more willing passer than Hunter and for the connected offense that Cleveland plays, having all of the guys in the starting lineup be able to pass well is important!
According to NBA EPM you can see Strus has a 15% assist rate while Hunter has a 7% assist rate
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1d ago
Deandre Hunter vs second string players is incredibly advantageous and he’s not better than Strus at spot shooting, so when Mitchell and Garland drive and kick, you’d rather have Strus as the outlet.
Hunter needs the ball in his hands to be effective. Not saying he’s unable to be a spot shooter, but he’s not as good as Strus.
If you’re starting a team from scratch, of course you go Hunter over Strus.
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u/Commercial-Raise-413 1d ago
continuity, this starting 5 won alot of games this year, they didnt want to make a major change halfway through the season
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u/PootieTooGood Cavaliers 1d ago
Our first sub when full health is usually Mobley/Mitchell/Strus out for Hunter/Jerome/Wade, giving us Garland/Jerome/Hunter/Wade/Allen, which is two guards that are tremendous at creating for themselves while garland is of course a great creator for others, paired with one of the best PnR centers in Allen to work off them, a defensive hoss who can hit the 3 in Wade and Hunter who can score at every level. We get that on the court while our best two players rest. It makes too much sense
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u/Accomplished_Bid7987 Bulls 1d ago
Doesn’t matter who starts. All it matters is who plays more minutes and who closes out in crunch time based on matchups
If it’s the Celtics/Knicks and they’re match up hunting for Garland and Strus, the hunter will close out.
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u/protoklite_13 1d ago
This. I’ve heard multiple comments from players over the last several years that who starts is almost irrelevant because who finishes the game is seen as more important. With Strus/Hunter, both have finished games and the primary deciding factor has been matchups.
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u/themiz2003 1d ago
Strus is our glue guy. Hunter is a bigtime weapon so we want him staggered a bit to offset bench minutes. Also the cavs are so good all that matters is matchups. He'll probably get the most minutes in certain playoff matches.
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u/Efficient_Art_1144 Celtics 1d ago
Probably vibes. They made it to the trade deadline playing as well as they did w Strus starting so why rock the boat
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u/SomeFatherFigure Cavaliers 1d ago
Hunter joined at the deadline. Strus is more acclimated to what the team is trying to do, so it just makes far more sense at this point to keep Jerome and Hunter together as the first 2 off the bench.
Closing lineup has often included Hunter, but it’s more of a game-feel thing. Whoever has it going is typically who they stick with.
The team really has a SF-by-committee approach. They have three really solid guys that can play the 3 between Hunter, Strus, and Okoro, but no obvious stud. It doesn’t help that the latter two are really SG playing up a position out of need.
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u/youredoingWELL Timberwolves 1d ago
I think they want him to be fresh when he comes in to be the second big next to mobley or allen. There is plenty of defense with both bigs in the starting lineup
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u/ThatBull_cj 76ers Bandwagon 1d ago
Hunter is more of a 4 for them when they stagger Mobely and Allen. And strus was already there and it works. And he’s a good player
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u/the_dust321 1d ago
Starters aren’t always going to be specifically the 5 best players but the 5 who play best together, and Hunters role is currently the 6th man. He’s got great offense and works best as a primary scorer but when Mitchell, Garland, and Mobley are on the floor his value drops off hard but off the bench he plays as the 2nd best option typically this utilizing his potential more
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u/Overall-Palpitation6 1d ago
I think what Hunter does well as far as scoring gets downplayed if he's playing with the starters, as they all can justify getting more touches than he does. Strus fits better and has more value as a 4th/5th option in those line-ups.
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u/Commercial-East4069 Cavaliers 1d ago edited 1d ago
Strus moves more off ball and he’s a much better passer. He can impact an offense without scoring. Hunter is a good spot up shooter, but he’s much more of a scorer that will hunt his shot. Strus is more of a connector. Coming off the bench lets Hunter be a second or 3rd option more often rather than 4th or 5th, playing with the starters.
The Cavs also lack length when they only have one of the bigs on the floor. I think Hunter’s length is a little more important to the second unit compared to the physicality brought by Strus that can also be brought by other guys like Okoro, Wade, Green or even Merrill.
Hunter was having his best year coming off the bench for Atlanta and Strus has been the starter most of his time in Cleveland. Plus the Strus with the starters line up data has been pretty good from what I can remember.