ORLANDO, Fla. — The Cleveland Cavaliers and Orlando Magic are engaged in one heck of a rock-throwing contest, and on Cleveland’s side, Max Strus and Georges Niang have shown off a couple of mean right arms.
In a first-round playoff series in which Orlando is shooting 34 percent overall and a staggering 23 percent from the 3-point range (hence its 0-2 deficit), the Cavaliers aren’t really shooting much better. We bring up Strus and Niang because, well, they were added to the mix after last year’s early postseason exit because it was clear the Cavs needed outside shooting.
So far, Strus and Niang are a combined 2-of-18 from 3-point range against the Magic. If you had bet on Evan Mobley (3-of-8) to be a better 3-point shooter than either Strus or Niang in this series, well, dinner would be on you.
But the Cavs, who face the Magic in Game 3 at 7 p.m. Thursday in Orlando, are winning these games because of Strus and Niang, not despite them. The franchise needed more than a shooting boost after being drummed out of the playoffs by the New York Knicks last April. It needed more competent veterans with playoff know-how.
Strus and Niang have brought that much and then some, even if their shots aren’t falling.
“I think you saw their spirit. … I think you also saw the understanding of what it takes to win a playoff game,” Cavs coach J.B. Bickerstaff said. “Your impact is obviously on the court, but it’s the spirit of the team as well. And, you know, being there with somebody who knows how to get it done, is big for everybody.”
Strus, 28, was a key member of the Miami Heat the previous two seasons, during which that team reached the Eastern Conference finals in 2022, and then last year, the NBA Finals. The Cavs traded for him over the summer, and he’s under contract for four years and $63 million.
A 35 percent 3-point shooter during the regular season and a 12.2 points-per-game scorer (a career best), so far in the Magic series, Strus is 2-of-10 from deep and 5-of-15 shooting overall. But he’s tied for second on the Cavs with 18 rebounds through two playoff games and is doing an excellent job guarding Orlando’s Franz Wagner, one of the Magic’s best (few?) options on offense.
“In the NBA, you get labels of being a shooter,” said Niang, who spoke after practice Wednesday. Strus was not made available to reporters.
“Max, even more than me, I think he impacts games more than just his shooting,” Niang continued. “There’s so much more to basketball. Being able to impact the game defensively with your energy, your smarts. ”
Added Bickerstaff: “(Strus) is rebounding the basketball. He’s finding assists for us. So as long as he continues to play the right way. I’m not worried about his shot because he’s going to have an impact on the game no matter what.”
If Strus is struggling a bit as a shooter in this series, well, Niang is downright slumping. He is 1-of-11 overall and has missed all eight of his 3-point tries.
Niang, 30, has been to the playoffs in five previous seasons with the Utah Jazz and Philadelphia 76ers and twice reached a conference semifinal. A career 40 percent shooter from 3-point range, the Cavs signed him to a three-year, $26 million contract as a free agent last summer. He played in all 82 games during the regular season and shot 38 percent from 3-point range, while also averaging a career-high 4.8 rebounds.
Niang’s lone field goal in this series came in Game 1, a 97-83 win for Cleveland. He was scoreless in 14 minutes in the Cavs’ 96-86 win in Game 2.
“Every shot has a one-shot life,” Niang said. “I can’t focus on what happened before. I just got to be ready to take the next one. Hopefully it goes in. You know, I trust my training and everything that I do to prepare to get to this moment so that when I step up, I’m shooting it with confidence and the ball is going to go in or it’s not going to go in, but the next shot still has to go up.”
Bickerstaff has raved about Strus’ overall game in this series. He’s been complimentary of Niang’s defensive prowess, too, especially after Game 1 in which Niang didn’t back down from Mo Wagner, the Magic’s high energy bench player.
When told of Bickerstaff signaling out of his defense, Niang was a little surprised, and appreciative.
“He said that?” Niang said. “That brings a smile to my face because, you know, I hate to make it about me, but my whole career has been kind of grinding it out. I’ve been a basketball player my whole life and a competitor and try and look at myself as a winner. You’re battling stigmas and labels in the NBA. It’s hard to break them. … So for him to say that, it means a lot. That’s something that I pride myself on. I’m a competitor, and I get pissed when people are trying to score on me or pick on me because I’m a prideful guy.”
Strus and Niang are not, of course, alone in their poor shooting. Donovan Mitchell, a five-time All-Star and the best player on either team in this series, is 20-of-43 overall and 5-of-18 from 3-point range. The Magic, meanwhile, my goodness. Franz Wagner (12-of-32 overall), Paolo Banchero (3-of-11 from 3), Jalen Suggs (6-of-21; 1-of-10 3-point), Gary Harris (5-of-16 overall), Jonathan Isaac (4-of-15; 3-of-11 3-point), Wendell Carter (2-of-10 overall) and Cole Anthony (0-of-11, 0-of-5) are all suffering miserably as shooters.
For two games now, the Magic (and pundits) have suggested they won’t continue to shoot this poorly. Perhaps with the series switching latitudes, shifting down to Orlando for Game 3, the ball will begin to find the hoop for the Magic.
But of the many glaring truths through the Cavs’ dominance to this point, one is that they have not yet been seriously challenged while also shooting it pretty badly themselves.
“Just gotta hit more than they do,” Bickerstaff said. “There’s going to come a point where our shots are going to fall.”
Wade update
The Cavaliers on Wednesday ruled out Dean Wade (knee sprain) for the first round. Wade hasn’t played since March 8 due to the injury.
Required reading
(Photo of Moritz Wagner and Georges Niang: David Richard / USA Today)
