NBA Rumors: Extending Kevin Love Is a Must for Timberwolves

The Minnesota Timberwolves probably aren't going to make the playoff cut this season, but it's hard not to be excited about their current roster. A year or two down the road, the Wolves could easily be a playoff team.

The only real tricky part is that the team needs to be aggressive to get Kevin Love locked up for next season and beyond. He has until Jan. 25 to sign an extension, and things are going to get awfully interesting if he doesn't.

According to the St. Paul Pioneer Press, you can expect the Wolves to make Love an offer for four years and $60 million some time in the next eight days. Seeing as how Love is making just under $5 million this season, signing for an average of $15 million per season would mean quite the raise.

And Love, obviously, would be worth it. He averaged 20 and 15 a night last season, and this season he's averaging 25 and 14 a night. There aren't many players who can provide that kind of production, and Love actually seems to be getting better as time goes by.

However, four years and $60 million may not be good enough to get the job done. David Aldridge of NBA.com noted that the Wolves can offer Love a max contract for five years and $80 million. Next to that, four years and $60 million doesn't quite stack up.

Moreover, Love didn't confirm he would sign a max deal even if the Wolves offered him one when he was asked about it during an interview with 1500 ESPN Radio in Milwaukee last week.

"It's all in my agent's hands. I just don't know what I am going to do. I'm happy to be a Timberwolf at this point and happy we're winning games," said Love.

Love should be willing to commit himself to Minnesota for the foreseeable future. He's easily the team's best player, but the prospect of playing alongside Ricky Rubio and Derrick Williams in coming seasons is one that should excite him. The Wolves are a team with a lot of upside.

But the price has to be right, and it's up to the Wolves to offer Love the right price.

If he accepts a four-year, $60 million offer, the Wolves should consider themselves lucky. If he doesn't, well, they'll have to up the ante.

No matter how they get it done, the Wolves simply don't want to risk putting themselves in a position where they could lose Love. If they lose him, the franchise's upward swing will level out in a significant way.