Channing Frye Advocates for Cavaliers' Kevin Love to Be Traded to Blazers

Channing Frye stepped into the role of general manager to hypothesize a move for his friend and former Cleveland Cavaliers teammate Kevin Love.

Frye tweeted Sunday he'd like to see Love, who grew up in Lake Oswego, Oregon, traded to the Portland Trail Blazers:

Love is entering the first year of the four-year, $120 million extension he signed with the Cavs last summer, so Cleveland doesn't have to be in any rush to trade him.

Even though the Cavaliers are years away from playoff contention, having Love around makes sense. He can help drive fan interest in a roster that's devoid of stars, and his experience will be invaluable in aiding the development of Collin Sexton and 2019 draftees Darius Garland, Dylan Windler and Kevin Porter Jr.

However, Love has arguably earned the right to ask for and receive a trade, especially if he has a destination in mind.

The Blazers would be an obvious target, both for the hometown factor and their status as a postseason mainstay.

Portland has a clear need to strengthen its frontcourt as well after Jusuf Nurkic suffered compound fractures in his left leg. A trio Love, Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum could shoot the lights out every night—albeit with big questions about their defense.

The Western Conference is wide open in 2019-20 with the Golden State Warriors bound to take a step backward. Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson are likely to miss the entire season because of injuries.

After reaching the Western Conference Finals, this is the time for Blazers general manager Neil Olshey to be aggressive and capitalize on a clear title window.

Love's salary and Portland's lack of trade assets will make a deal difficult with Cleveland but not impossible, especially if Love makes his desire for a move westward clear to the Cavs front office.