Max Strus’ zone defense saved Cavs in win over Hornets: ‘He was the coach for a day’

The Cleveland Cavaliers keep winning, but it hasn’t been because of their defense. It looked like that would be the case again as they allowed the Charlotte Hornets to put up 40 points in the third quarter, but then something changed. Charlotte went just 6-21 from the field for just 15 points in the final frame, leading to Cleveland’s 15th straight win.

“We changed our defense a little bit, went into zone and I feel like that really slowed them down,” Evan Mobley said. “I like our versatility with the zone. … We have a lot of different options that we could show people. I feel like we did that tonight.”

This worked because it cut down on the drive-and-kick game that led to so many open triples through the first three quarters. The Cavs over willingness to help on drives left them in a position where they couldn’t rotate back out to the shooter on the perimeter. This was most evident when their best point-of-attack defenders, Isaac Okoro and Dean Wade, were not on the floor.

“The zone definitely saved us,” Darius Garland said. “They were just getting downhill, they play five out, so none of our rim protectors were in the paint. (They were) just driving and had the swing, swing for wide-open threes.”

The zone removes the overhelp as the perimeter defender constantly rotates to a shooter even when they are beaten off the dribble. There’s also a rim protector waiting for them if they get to the basket. This was tough for a team like Charlotte that shoots second most threes in the leagueto handle. They ended up just trying to shoot over a stationary defense that can put up a good fight on the attempt.

The Hornets also tried to get to the middle of the floor and take contested jumpers, which will always be a win for the defense, even when making tough twos.

“That’s an excellent zone, that’s an excellent scheme of how we guard the zone, shout out to Max (Strus),” Allen said. “He kind of put in a zone. He was a coach for a day, telling us where to be and how to guard certain things.”

Strus’ instructions led to a disciplined zone against Charlotte, much like the ones Erik Spoelstra is famous for with the Miami Heat. Strus seemed to have picked up a thing or two from his run to NBA finals with Spoelstra.

“(We’re) still learning from him even though he’s on the sidelines,” Garland said. “He’s still preaching about the zone. So even on film (sessions) he’s standing up (at) the board, like pointing out where we need to be. So that’s good to see. I mean, he knows it really well. Coach Max doing pretty well.”

The Hornets are not a great basketball team, but they play a similar, albeit watered down, offense to the Boston Celtics. It is by design. Charlotte head coach Charles Lee spent last year as an assistant with the Celtics and was under Mike Budenholzer Milwaukee Bucks before that. Both systems are known for their principle spacing and reliance on the drive-and-kick game to generate outside looks. Lee has done a good job of implementing that in Charlotte, even though he doesn’t have the talent of either of those teams.

We’ll have to wait until Tuesday to see if this zone works against a much better Celtics offense. What we do know is that the zone Strus was a part of in Miami worked against Boston in the 2023 playoffs. The plan is there. And right now the players also have confidence in the zone. At least they now have a basket to keep Joe Mazzulla’s team off balance.

“Just our energy in the zone,” Allen said. “We communicate well, we know when to box out. We know if Evan goes, I’ve got his back. It’s just a good movement team that works well together.”