NBA Trade Rumors: Latest on Potential Kevin Love Deals and More

The NBA season could start with a bang. LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers seem set to face one of King James' longtime nemeses on opening night, per Gary Washburn of The Boston Globe:

"Rumor has it that the NBA’s season-opening game on TNT will be San Antonio at Cleveland, the first home game for LeBron James in his return to Cleveland and the first game for the defending NBA champion Spurs. The NBA schedule is expected to be released next month."

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That would be quite the start to a much-anticipated regular season. Seeing LeBron rock the No. 23 jersey against the Spurs will make it seem even more surreal.

If the Chicago Bulls take on the Indiana Pacers and the Dallas Mavericks face the Houston Rockets as well, it'll be one amazing night.

New York's Less-Than-Tempting Offer for Kevin Love

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You can't blame the New York Knicks for throwing their hat in the Kevin Love ring. Every team seems to have some level of interest in the Minnesota Timberwolves star, even if they don't have the assets to acquire him.

Per Andrew Battifarano of NESN, the Knicks took their best shot, but it didn't tempt Minnesota's management: "New York offered Amar’e Stoudemire, Tim Hardaway, Jr. and Iman Shumpert to the Minnesota Timberwolves in an attempt to land Love, a source told the Wall Street Journal on Saturday. The Wolves reportedly rejected the deal."

While Hardaway Jr. and Shumpert certainly have some value, finding a team to take Stoudemire will be tough. 

Love's Contract Intentions

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Don't expect Love to immediately opt in, even if he is traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Terry Pluto of the Cleveland Plain Dealer writes:

"

Talking to some NBA executives, (Love opting-in) could be a problem. One executive explained how the best move for Love may be to come to the Cavs on the current deal — no changes. He becomes a free agent in 2015, then signs a five-year deal for the maximum (could be more than $100 million) to stay here.

"

It makes sense for Love to wait until the summer of 2015 to sign the bigger deal. By that same notion, it also seems to make more sense for Love to simply wait until the end of the season to sign with Cleveland, if he truly wants to play there.

Why weaken the strong young nucleus the team has with Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett? After the upcoming season, Anderson Varejao will come off the books (though he'd likely return to appease James), and Tristan Thompson can be a restricted free agent, per Spotrac.

Can Love and the Cavs wait? Both would likely benefit in the long run.

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