Kevin Love Comments on Role with Cavaliers, Team Chemistry and More

Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love came off the bench in Game 4 of the NBA Finals after suffering a concussion in Game 2 and missing Game 3, yet he's found himself in the middle of conversations regarding his team's success.

On Saturday, he spoke with ESPN.com's Dave McMenamin about why that happens:

"

Why do you think? You're part of it. I'm not saying you're who does it, but you are there with the people that do ...

I don't know how to answer it, because I have a couple bad games last series [against Toronto], tough games, and have to come back and do whatever I needed to do to help the team. Still, it's just never enough.

"

Love arrived in Cleveland prior to the 2014-15 season as the third part of the Cavaliers' Big Three alongside LeBron James and Kyrie Irving.

Once a 20-plus-points-per-game player with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Love has played a diminished role in Cleveland. In his two years with the Cavaliers, he's averaged 16.2 points per game, almost 10 points fewer than what he averaged during his final year in Minnesota.

Regardless, he still feels at home in Cleveland, per McMenamin:

"

I mean, I've been asked to do different things, being here. I've been asked to be the second, third guy -- third guy most nights. It hasn't been the easiest transition in the world, but as far as being a part of a family, this unit here, I've never been on a team that's closer than this. So that's why I don't understand when I hear people say I'm a square peg in a round hole or something like that.

"

But for the second straight year, the Cavs, who trail 3-1 in the series, are on the brink of falling short against the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals. To add insult to injury, this is also the second year in a row that Love has missed time in the postseason.

Last year, it was a shoulder injury, which he suffered at the hands of the Boston Celtics' Kelly Olynyk in the first round. This year, it was the result of an elbow to the head from Golden State's Harrison Barnes.

It's been a trying week for Love, who spoke to McMenamin about the toll the concussion has taken on him.

"Having to deal with the headaches, having to deal with not being able to sleep, initially being in the dark rooms," he said. "Just going over all the stuff and then not being able to play was so, so frustrating. It was a weird experience dealing with a concussion."

But Love noted his teammates have been there to pick him up.

"Bron [LeBron James] came to me when he found out the news I wasn't playing, he was like: 'I got you. We got you.' And R.J. said the same thing," Love said. "He knew he was stepping in for me. Kyrie [Irving] said the same thing."

Team unity hasn't stopped pundits and fans alike from suggesting that Love should be traded in the offseason, though Love has brushed the speculation aside.

"It's an easy storyline, and people are going to run with it, and that's always going to be how it is," he said, per McMenamin.

If the Cavaliers are able to turn things around and pull off an enormous comeback, especially if Love makes significant contributions, then those suggestions should subside.

But a source told McMenamin that Love's chances of re-entering the starting lineup for Monday night's Game 5 could hinge on whether Warriors forward Draymond Green is suspended for his altercation with James during Game 4. Sources told ESPN.com's Marc Stein (via ESPN.com's Brian Windhorst) that their exchange is under league review.

With the Cavaliers on the brink of elimination, the ties that bind Love with the organization could be under extreme pressure if the Warriors win one more game. So whether or not Green is playing Monday, the Cavaliers and Love must do everything they can to get a win on the road and keep their Finals hopes alive.

Stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com.