Kevin Love: Latest News, Rumors and Speculation Surrounding Star PF
Cleveland Cavaliers star power forward Kevin Love dislocated his left shoulder as the team advanced in the playoffs with a win in Boston on Sunday. The Celtics were reportedly gaining as a potential free-agent destination for Love this offseason, but the injury may have changed how Love views his future.
Continue for updates.
Ding: Love a "Great Possibility" for Lakers
Tuesday, April 28
Bleacher Report's Kevin Ding explained why Love could be joining the Lakers in free agency:
Bleacher Report senior writer Ethan Skolnick also weighed in on Love's outlook and talked about why he thinks there is a good chance Love remains in Cleveland:
Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports reported on April 26 that the Celtics were beginning to rival the Lakers as a primary destination for Love. Yet Love's injury may dissuade him from taking his talents to Boston:
"For as much as Kevin Love has publicly resisted the discussion of free agency this season, it has been on his mind. He has never been completely comfortable in Cleveland, with his role, nor his connection to those around him. Throughout the year, league sources say, one destination grew in possibility as his exit strategy: The Boston Celtics.
Boston has been no sure thing to lure Love, but it had a better shot than most had believed. If Love left the Cavaliers, the Celtics had closed the gap on the Los Angeles Lakers, league sources told Yahoo Sports.
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Love indeed did not quite fit in during his stint with the Cavs, but he did put up 23 points in helping Cleveland defeat the Celtics in Game 3 of their opening-round series. This marks the first NBA postseason experience Love has had, which Wojnarowski speculates may sell him on a long-term future in Cleveland.
ESPN's Dave McMenamin recorded what Love had to say after Sunday's game about the play Kelly Olynyk made to hurt him:
Celtics sources told Wojnarowski that Olynyk is simply uncoordinated and don't believe he intended to injure him.
Even if Love has felt out of place since joining a new team for the first time in his pro career, at least Kendrick Perkins and J.R. Smith retaliated on Sunday on Love's behalf.
Smith went a bit overboard and was ejected for striking Jae Crowder in the face. However, it goes to show that there is support in the locker room for Love, at least for what he brings to the table as a player, even if his personality doesn't quite mesh.
Fox Sports Ohio's Sam Amico had some inside information to suggest teammates were upset to see Love leave in such unsavory fashion:
Brian Windhorst of ESPN reports Love will be out a minimum of two weeks. The critical absence from the lineup may prevent Love from establishing better chemistry and feeling more comfortable not only as a member of the Cavs, but also as a prominent contributor to a championship contender.
Love has looked fine in his initial taste of the playoffs. ESPN Stats & Info highlights how much better the Cavs have been with Love on the floor:
But as Wojnarowski implies, the injury complicates the situation to a great degree. Perhaps Cleveland won't know if it can trust Love when it matters most, against the highest-quality opponents on the biggest stage.
If Boston and Los Angeles are Love's two preferred destinations, the former hurt itself on Sunday, and the Lakers still look like a mess, pending a lottery draft pick and whatever they can gain in free agency.
The Cavaliers may present Love with the most promising situation for success in the immediate future and for the long haul. It appears to be a matter of whether both parties are comfortable staying together and for how long.
