NBA Trade Rumors 2014: Kevin Love Remains on Trading Block; How Much Is He Really Worth?
After LeBron James made his decision to play for the Cleveland Cavaliers, a huge domino effect took place afterwards. One by one we saw elite players and superstars re-sign, opt out, and sign elsewhere.
Kevin Love is by far the biggest name on the trade market remaining this offseason. He's a three-time All-Star who can hit perimeter jump shots and he brings a large 6-foot-10, 243-pound body with him. Love has also previously won a Three-Point Shootout competition, which is very rare for a power forward.
The team that has been most connected with Love is the Cavaliers. After acquiring James, Love has expressed his desire to play alongside the King, but the Cavaliers don't want to give up too much in return. The most likely scenario was a Love for Andrew Wiggins trade, however it doesn't appear as if that will be happening.
The Cavaliers recently signed Wiggins to his rookie contract, thus preventing any Wiggins trade for at least 30 days.
Aside from an NBA mandatory one-month prevention period, maybe the Cavaliers shouldn't trade Wiggins and a first round pick for Love. Love is a good power forward, but he still lacks elite defensive intangibles. In his six seasons with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Love has zero playoff appearances.
In many ways, Love is the anti-Dennis Rodman of this era. Love will put up video game type numbers and he has a great jump shot for a power forward. However, effort, defense, and leadership aren't always there. Despite being three inches shorter and 50 pounds lighter, Rodman averaged nearly two more rebounds per 36 minutes than Love currently does. For his size, salary, and talents, Love doesn't deliver as much as he's capable of.
Clearly, Love is a gifted scorer, but he has to have the ball in his hands to be effective. If the Cavaliers or another team, like the Chicago Bulls, are going to trade for him, then they must realize the offense is going to run through him. For whatever reason, he doesn't seem to have top team chemistry with his teammates. He and Ricky Rubio could have been the next John Stockton-Karl Malone combination (to a smaller degree) but disagreements with teammates have come up frequently.
Love has two years remaining on his contract, with the final year having an opt-out option. If the Timberwolves don't trade Love this offseason or early regular season, he could walk for nothing next year. The Golden State Warriors have shown interest, but they have no long-term commitment from Love. There's nothing stopping Love from leaving the Warriors after just one season, like Dwight Howard did with the Los Angeles Lakers. Love also doesn't have the defensive in-paint skills to transfer to center.
Kevin Love is a great offensive player, but he is picky and inconsistent. Trading for him could be a big risk because he is not obligated to stay after next season. A sign and trade would give more security.
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