Kevin Love: Minnesota Timberwolves Set to Offer Superstar Max Extension

The man described by Charles Barkley as "the best power forward in the world" is soon to get paid like one.

According to Wolfson of 1500 ESPN Twin Cities, the Minnesota Timberwolves are expected to offer superstar forward Kevin Love a max contract extension by the 11 p.m. deadline on January 25th. Love was elected to the 2011 NBA All Star Game and led the league in rebounding in just his third season out of UCLA.

The 23-year-old Santa Monica native currently ranks fourth in scoring and second in rebounding for an up-and-coming T-Wolves team.

Love was the fifth-overall pick of the Memphis Grizzlies in the 2008 NBA Draft and was promptly swapped to Minnesota, along with Mike Miller, Brian Cardinal and Jason Collins, in a deal for USC guard OJ Mayo, Greg Buckner, Marko Jaric and Antoine Walker.

Love has quickly emerged as the cornerstone of the T-Wolves franchise that has been somewhat haphazardly rebuilt under the auspices of much maligned GM David Kahn. With the likes of Love, Michael Beasley and rookies Ricky Rubio and Derrick Williams, Minnesota may yet have the makings of a competitive basketball team, especially with the ever-crafty Rick Adelman guiding this group of youngsters from the bench. 

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