Cleveland Cavaliers general manager David Griffin, along with the team, anticipates forward Kevin Love will be returning to the lineup during the team's upcoming trip that begins Saturday. Love has had surgery on his left knee on Feb. 14.

According to USA Today, the defending NBA champions Cleveland Cavaliers have had a disappointing 7-6 record ever since he was injured and have been plagued by defensive and rebounding issues without their All-Star forward. Love is currently having his best statistical season ever since joining the Cavaliers in 2014, averaging 20 points and 11.1 rebounds per game for the team.

Recently, Cleveland got dominated on the boards and was outrebounded 52-38 in Sunday's loss to the surging Houston Rockets. With Love finally coming back to the team, the Cavs are expected to bounce back and win a couple more games before ending the 2016-2017 regular season on a high note.

Griffin has also said that Love had participated in 3-on-3 drills on Tuesday, and the team will also be monitoring how he responds before deciding on their next step. The nine-year veteran out of UCLA has also recently posted a photo of his uniform hanging in his locker just before the Cavaliers' game against the Detroit Pistons.

According to NBA.com, Cleveland, which had lost four out of five games, will begin a four-game road trip Saturday against the Los Angeles Clippers. With the current state in the Eastern Conference standings, the Cavaliers need to win their next games in order to solidify the East's no. 1 spot and secure home court advantage throughout the playoffs.

The Cavaliers currently lead Boston by two games for the top spot in the Eastern Conference. If they fumble and drop their next game, they can potentially be overtaken by a defensive-minded Boston team that is also looking towards securing home court advantage throughout the playoffs.

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