Kevin Love Wants to Return to Cavaliers from Hand Injury vs. Bucks

Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love reportedly is a possibility to play in Monday night's game against the Milwaukee Bucks, according to Rachel Nichols and Lisa Salters of ESPN: 

Love, 29, has been out of action since Jan. 28 after breaking his left hand.

The veteran forward will return to the lineup to a completely new team. Gone, from the last time he appeared on the court, are Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Dwyane Wade, Derrick Rose and Iman Shumpert. In are Rodney Hood, George Hill, Larry Nance Jr. and Jordan Clarkson, all a part of the team's transformative trade deadline.

With Love out of action, the Cavaliers have gone 12-9. Since reshaping their entire roster in early February, meanwhile, the team is 10-7.

His return offers Cleveland a true No. 2 scoring threat behind LeBron James and the best rebounder on the roster. Love's ability to stretch the defense with his three-point shooting will also be key for the Cavs.

Before his injury, Love was averaging 17.9 points and 9.4 rebounds per game, shooting 40.4 percent from beyond the arc. Certainly, his return to action would be a positive story for the team after it was announced that head coach Tyronn Lue would be taking a leave of absence to address health concerns, with Larry Drew taking over on an interim basis.

"After many conversations with our doctors and [Cavaliers general manager] Koby Altman and much thought given to what is best for the team and my health, I need to step back from coaching for the time being and focus on trying to establish a stronger and healthier foundation from which to coach for the rest of the season," Lue said in a statement Monday, per Ben Rohrbach of Yahoo Sports.

Lue is expected to reevaluate his condition in a week. 

Love's return would also take some pressure off a roster currently dealing with injuries to Hood, Nance, Tristan Thompson and Cedi Osman. With the Cavaliers battling for playoff position and just a half-game ahead of the Washington Wizards and Philadelphia 76ers for the No. 3 seed, the return of Love would be huge down the stretch.