The test results are in, and they are not good. The Max Strus injury from Sunday’s preseason opener in Honolulu is a partial tear of the plantar fascia in his right foot, the Clippers announced Monday. He will be reevaluated in four weeks. That rules him out for the rest of the preseason and, in practical terms, the start of the regular season, which opens October 21 against Sacramento at Intuit Dome.
Here is what is confirmed, what the timeline does and does not mean, and how Tyronn Lue’s rotation changes before the October 10 game in Vancouver. Our full recap of the 104-101 win over Golden State is here.
Max Strus Injury: The Official Diagnosis
“Max Strus suffered a partial tear of the plantar fascia in his right foot during Sunday’s preseason game and will be reevaluated in four weeks,” the team’s public relations account posted Monday. ESPN’s Shams Charania reported the same diagnosis through league sources.
ESPN’s Anthony Slater described the play. About five minutes into the game, Strus cut across the lane to receive a pass and pulled up as he caught it, struggling to put weight on his right foot. Lue called timeout immediately, and Strus limped slowly to the locker room. NBA.com listed the exit with 7:50 left in the first quarter. Tests in Los Angeles after the flight back from Honolulu confirmed the tear.
On Sunday night, before the imaging, Lue had already sounded worried. “Never good to see when it’s a non-contact play,” he said.
What “Reevaluated in Four Weeks” Means
A reevaluation date is not a return date. ClutchPoints’ Tomer Azarly stressed that point, and it is worth repeating. In four weeks the medical staff will check progress and set the next step. Strus could be cleared to ramp up then, or the timeline could extend.
Hoops Rumors noted that four weeks from Monday lands on November 2, when the Clippers host Toronto in their seventh regular-season game. Even in a best case, Strus would likely need practice time after that checkpoint before playing. We are not projecting a return game, and the team has not given one.
A Third Straight Start Lost to Injury
This is a hard run for the eighth-year veteran. Strus missed most of last season with a Jones fracture in his left foot, which required surgery in August 2025. He did not debut until mid-March, then played 12 regular-season games and all 18 of Cleveland’s playoff games. This injury is to the other foot, and there has been no indication it is related to the earlier fracture.
The Clippers acquired Strus from Cleveland on August 20 in a five-team trade that also involved Charlotte, Washington and Denver. He is in the final season of his contract and is extension-eligible, according to Hoops Rumors. He started Sunday at shooting guard next to Darius Garland, which is the role he was expected to hold to open the season.
The Clippers Injury List After the Max Strus Injury
- Max Strus (right foot, partial plantar fascia tear): reevaluation in four weeks.
- Brandon Ingram (heel surgery, partially torn Achilles repaired in May): recently advanced to light court work, per ESPN; will miss the start of the season.
- Bradley Beal (right knee inflammation): did not play Sunday. Separately, Beal told the Orange County Register he can now run and jump without pain after last season’s hip surgery. “I have no doubts at all,” he said. No return date has been announced.
- Jordan Miller (left shoulder surgery): expected to be out for months.
- Yanic Konan Niederhauser (foot): still out after surgery.
- Kobe Sanders (left hip impingement): held out Sunday; no timetable has been set, per the Register.
NBC Sports pointed out that the out list alone could form a solid five-man regular-season unit. That is the depth problem in one sentence.
Rotation Impact: Who Fills the Wing Minutes
With Strus, Ingram and Beal all unavailable, the starting spot next to Garland is open. The realistic candidates:
- Keaton Wagler: the No. 5 pick played 30:05 on Sunday after Strus left, scoring 15 and hitting the go-ahead jumper despite a 3-of-15 shooting night. SI’s Cem Yolbulan suggested Lue may prefer to keep Wagler against bench units for now.
- Kris Dunn: the defense-first option. He played only 6:06 on Sunday but fits a lineup that already has Garland and Rui Hachimura as scorers.
- Gradey Dick: four points on 1-of-5 shooting in 16 minutes Sunday. His shooting is the reason he is in the conversation, and the next two preseason games are his chance to prove it.
- Derrick Jones Jr. and Hachimura: already starters. Hachimura’s 21-point debut in 15 minutes makes him an even bigger part of the offense now.
Hachimura said the staff has been asking him to be more aggressive, which matters more with a scorer like Strus out. “With a new team, (head coach Tyronn Lue) and the coaching staff, they’ve been communicating, and I’ve been communicating with them about how much they want me to be aggressive. Especially on the offensive side,” he said, via beat writer Joey Linn. “They’re making the right plays and right calls. That’s why I got easy shots.”
Cameron Christie, who played 28 minutes and hit the clinching free throws, and Blake Wesley, who made the game-saving block, also showed enough Sunday to push for minutes.
Practice and Schedule After Honolulu
The Clippers flew home from Oʻahu after Sunday’s game, ending a week of camp on the island. As of Tuesday morning, no public practice report or lineup update from Los Angeles had been released beyond the Strus diagnosis. Lue’s first media session back home should give the first hint of how he plans to cover the shooting guard spot.
Two preseason games remain:
- Saturday, October 10: vs. Toronto Raptors at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, 3:30 p.m. PT, part of the NBA Canada Series.
- Wednesday, October 14: vs. Denver Nuggets at Intuit Dome.
The regular season opens October 21 at home against the Sacramento Kings.
Watch: Strus at Media Day
Before the injury, Strus spoke about the depth of this roster. The Clippers’ official channel posted the clip:
That depth is now the plan. The Max Strus injury also adds to the wing questions we raised in our Day 3 camp report, when Strus was running with the first unit. Follow InfanityTV for Lue’s first comments after the diagnosis and the Vancouver game preview.
