NBA Rumors: Latest Buzz on Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving and Carmelo Anthony
Three of the biggest names in the NBA are among the players whose long-term statuses are in question with their current teams.
How long will Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving and Carmelo Anthony remain with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks, respectively?
We may get the answers definitively over the next month for Love and Melo, but Irving's fate may be drawn out a bit longer.
Here's the latest details on each player's saga with their current team.
Sacramento Willing to Rent Love?
Most of us have heard rumblings about the Los Angeles Lakers and Chicago Bulls being good fits for Love if the Wolves decide to trade their seemingly disgruntled star.
Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports reports that the Sacramento Kings are willing to trade for Love, even without a guarantee that he'll re-sign with the team.
Spears writes:
"The Sacramento Kings have let the Minnesota Timberwolves know they are interested in trading for All-Star forward Kevin Love – and the Kings would make a deal without any assurance from Love he’d re-sign with them, a league source told Yahoo Sports.
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That's a pretty bold move, and one that could be especially tempting to the Wolves if they favor the assets the Kings would send their way.
As much as the Bulls, Lakers and other more notable teams might sound like more ideal landing spots for Love, the Kings could really make some noise.
Essentially, their willingness to trade without a guarantee takes away Love's ability to influence a deal.
Kyrie Irving Non-Committal
Do the Cavs have what it takes to maintain a perennial star? LeBron James left for South Beach during the summer of 2010. Now Irving might be the next star to bolt.
Long-time NBA insider Peter Vecsey is reporting that the Cavs haven't offered their star point guard a contract because they don't want to be embarrassed:
If this is true, the 2014-15 season is going to be huge for the team and for Irving. Cleveland has to prove it is a city and organization capable of building around a star.
This puts all the more pressure on whomever the poor kid is who is selected with the top pick in the upcoming draft.
Carmelo's Secret Free-Agent Meeting
Without question, Anthony is the prime target for all teams this offseason.
Several teams would love to add Anthony's offensive prowess to their lineup.
Anthony seems intent to opt out and become a free agent, but that doesn't mean he'll leave the Knicks.
According to Marc Berman of the New York Post, Anthony and his team met to discuss his options on Friday night.
There were no indications as to what specifics came out of the meeting, but this is perhaps the first rumblings concerning Anthony since the regular season ended.
Berman insists the Knicks are still amongst the favorites for small forward who turns 30 on Thursday.
In an interview with ESPN's Sage Steele and Tim Legler on SportsCenter from February, Melo said he knows he can attract players, and would be willing to take less money if it meant bringing in more talent.
He said:
"I have the chance to attract some people to come to New York. Everybody saw this last year, how electrified that city was. I kind of want to bring that back. If I can become a free agent to make that happen, then I want to do that.
I know for me, my main thing is I want to win and I want to win now. I'm going to do whatever I have to do to win a championship.
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A bigger question is would Melo be willing to take lesser money with a team like the Chicago Bulls under the same thought process?
Once the NBA draft rolls around next month, the Melo rumors and news will pick up in a major way. Stay tuned.
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