Cavaliers' Kevin Love Says He Still Has Suicidal Thoughts, Talks Mental Health

Kevin Love has opened up about the mental health problems he continues to deal with, including thinking about suicide.

On an upcoming episode of In Depth with Graham Bensinger, the Cleveland Cavaliers star said that suicidal thoughts still "cross your mind" after noting he once tried to look up ways to kill himself while playing for the Minnesota Timberwolves. 

"If you've been down that road ... it does cross your mind," Love said. "And I've just learned to speak my truth, honestly. I've learned that nothing haunts us like the things we don't say. So me keeping that in is actually more harmful."   

Love first addressed his struggles with mental health in a March 2018 article on The Players' Tribune. The five-time All-Star noted that he had a panic attack in the middle of a game between the Cavs and Atlanta Hawks: 

"Mental health isn't just an athlete thing. What you do for a living doesn't have to define who you are. This is an everyone thing. No matter what our circumstances, we're all carrying around things that hurt — and they can hurt us if we keep them buried inside. Not talking about our inner lives robs us of really getting to know ourselves and robs us of the chance to reach out to others in need. So if you're reading this and you're having a hard time, no matter how big or small it seems to you, I want to remind you that you're not weird or different for sharing what you're going through."

Speaking to Bensinger, Love noted it's been easier for him to get through things knowing that there are people out there who have dealt with similar issues and want to help. 

"I know that there's a whole group and a strength in numbers out there of people that are dealing with it," Love said. "And if we have more people that pay it forward—like we've seen across a number of sports and a number of walks of life—that's gonna be better."

Since going public with his mental health issues, Love has started his own charity fund that is designed to provide people with the tools to treat their physical and emotional well being.