Kevin Love News and Rumors

[swingin val]

So yea. Wolves give up Luc Mbah a Moute, Kevin Love, Alexey Shved, and a 1st round pick.

Wolves get Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett, and Thad Young.

Amazing deal for Minnesota.

 

[Grin&MartyBarret]

So yea. Wolves give up Luc Mbah a Moute, Kevin Love, Alexey Shved, and a 1st round pick.

Wolves get Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett, and Thad Young.

Amazing deal for Minnesota.

Definitely the biggest return for any franchise that's dealt a star in the last decade or so.

 

[wade boggs chicken dinner]

So yea. Wolves give up Luc Mbah a Moute, Kevin Love, Alexey Shved, and a 1st round pick.

Wolves get Andrew Wiggins, Anthony Bennett, and Thad Young.

Amazing deal for Minnesota.

Understand the #1 is Miami's #1 next year.

Wow the Sixers are going to be miserable. If Noel struggles, will they win 15 games?

 

[LondonSox]

Understand the #1 is Miami's #1 next year.

Wow the Sixers are going to be miserable. If Noel struggles, will they win 15 games?

 
They sucked last year with Young. Not sure it matters, and I'm sure they'll be careful with Noel as he needs to bulk up more.
But yeah the tank goes on. That Miami pick could be ok though. Miami could easily struggle if they have an injury or two. Not lottery but best case is mid teens type I would think right?

 

[PBDWake]

 
They sucked last year with Young. Not sure it matters, and I'm sure they'll be careful with Noel as he needs to bulk up more.
But yeah the tank goes on. That Miami pick could be ok though. Miami could easily struggle if they have an injury or two. Not lottery but best case is mid teens type I would think right?

If Wade isn't healthy, aren't we basically looking at the Bosh Toronto years? Maybe even not that good.

 

[tbrown_01923]

How delicate can they (Philly) be with Nerlens?  They need to start his learning curve so they can decide if he can play in yr 3/4 of his rookie deal.  I would think they need him on the court 25+ a night, with an eyu to him being on the court next year at 30+...

 

[LondonSox]

How delicate can they (Philly) be with Nerlens?  They need to start his learning curve so they can decide if he can play in yr 3/4 of his rookie deal.  I would think they need him on the court 25+ a night, with an eyu to him being on the court next year at 30+...

 
Well I just think they will be careful if he has niggles etc, the risk is high. If he had been healthy you would have hoped he added some muscle last year, until he adds some size - esp as he's one of what two players people will be worried about, he's going to get banged around.
I think the minutes are right but they probably don't play him every game even if they could. That's the sort of thing I mean. They are not playing to win, so I could easily see them resting him if he's dinged up. 
 
As for the Heat they are better than the Raptors imo Deng, Bosh, Wade plus a bunch of ok role players. Sans Wade they are still a potential bad playoff team. Wade ages in dog years again and Deng gets hurt, then yeah they could be BAD but that's not exactly something to bank on

 

[mauf]

If Wade isn't healthy, aren't we basically looking at the Bosh Toronto years? Maybe even not that good.

My thoughts exactly. Gambling on a D- Wade injury or meltdown is preferable to any of Minny's other non-Love assets, including Bennett.

 

[Devizier]

Isn't the Miami pick protected? Top ten or so?

 

[LondonSox]

Isn't the Miami pick protected? Top ten or so?

yes top 10

 

[Infield Infidel]

 

[MakMan44]

Woj reporting the trade call is done, should be official soon.

 

[MakMan44]

http://www.nba.com/timberwolves/news/love-three-team-trade?utm_content=TRADE+ANNOUNCEMENT&utm_campaign=Eyes+On+The+Rise&utm_source=14499&utm_term=1408816930&utm_medium=Twitter%3A+MNTimberwolves
 
Official 

 

[mauf]

Not exactly a shrewd negotiation on Cleveland's part. No way Flip walks away if the Cavs insist the deal is Wiggins and roster garbage for Love.

 

[radsoxfan]

Not exactly a shrewd negotiation on Cleveland's part. No way Flip walks away if the Cavs insist the deal is Wiggins and roster garbage for Love.

 
I'll take Bennett over roster garbage, but it's quite possible those 2 are pretty close to the same.  

 

[TomRicardo]

Not exactly a shrewd negotiation on Cleveland's part. No way Flip walks away if the Cavs insist the deal is Wiggins and roster garbage for Love.

 
What roster garbage are you speaking of?  The only people would could have traded Wiggins for is Thompson, Bennet, and Waiters to make the salary match.  The Cavs couldn't have pieced together smaller salaries than that.  I think the Cavs traded the guy they had the least interest in.

 

[PedroKsBambino]

Not exactly a shrewd negotiation on Cleveland's part. No way Flip walks away if the Cavs insist the deal is Wiggins and roster garbage for Love.

 
If we knew that Lebron was indifferent and no expectations had been set, maybe.  But it's awful hard to second-guess anything about Cleveland's offseason without knowing what they promised to get Lebron there---and I'm confident you'd agree that Lebron is worth a whole lot more than the difference between Bennett and roster dreck.

 

[wade boggs chicken dinner]

So if Kevin Love doesn't reach the playoffs this year, we're really going to have to reevaluate him as a player....

 

[moly99]

 
What roster garbage are you speaking of?  The only people would could have traded Wiggins for is Thompson, Bennet, and Waiters to make the salary match.  The Cavs couldn't have pieced together smaller salaries than that.  I think the Cavs traded the guy they had the least interest in.

 
I don't disagree with you. But it's pretty crazy that they drafted a guy #1 overall one year and then -without any major injuries or legal problems- view him as chaff the next year. Dan Gilbert is amazing.

 

[bowiac]

I don't disagree with you. But it's pretty crazy that they drafted a guy #1 overall one year and then -without any major injuries or legal problems- view him as chaff the next year. Dan Gilbert is amazing.

Credit to Gilbert for recognizing Bennett as chaff, rather than sticking with him out of stubbornness.

 

[jose melendez]

Well, got to give Flip credit.  He got a fantastic deal--long way from the Charles Barkley deal.

 

[moly99]

Credit to Gilbert for recognizing Bennett as chaff, rather than sticking with him out of stubbornness.

 
Can't I just mock him for taking Bennett #1 overall despite the fact that he drafted another PF the year before with the 4th pick?

 

[Sam Ray Not]

So if Kevin Love doesn't reach the playoffs this year, we're really going to have to reevaluate him as a player....

Or at least reevaluate the long-term health prognosis of him and James, since the only way that happens is if they both miss 50+ games.

 

[mt8thsw9th]

Well, got to give Flip credit.  He got a fantastic deal--long way from the Charles Barkley deal.

 
Why is Saunders getting blamed for the Barkley deal?
 
 

 
Can't I just mock him for taking Bennett #1 overall despite the fact that he drafted another PF the year before with the 4th pick?

 

 
He drafted a SG (Walters) with the 4th pick the year before, and Bennett was drafted to play SF. Thompson was the year before that.

 

[jose melendez]

He's not--its just a famous example off turning talentintonotuing

 

[Blacken]

He's not--its just a famous example off turning talentintonotuing

Did you just sort of stroke off there for a sec, Jose?

 

[mt8thsw9th]

He's not--its just a famous example off turning talentintonotuing

 
Alright, I thought you were implicating Saunders, hence the "long way" bit, like he'd gotten better over the years.
 
I was actually looking at lists of "worst trades" in NBA history, but most are cases in which draft rights are traded for vets, which I suppose are bad trades (and most examples are of players drafted out of the lottery picks, which means the players weren't no obviously great when they were traded), but in terms of NBA-established talent in the primes of their careers, it doesn't seem like it's something that happens a ton (outside of sign and trade deals, in which case Amare to NY would be worse on paper than receiving Hornacek, but not a 1:1 comp).  I think the Wolves' on paper did better than they did in the Garnett trade, but if none of the chips they received are as valuable as Al Jefferson, it just demonstrates how tough it is to get value from stars in this league. And makes it kind of amazing that Ainge has collected so many chips without trading a single star in his prime.

 

[jose melendez]

Did you just sort of stroke off there for a sec, Jose?

 
 
Had to leave abruptly while typing on a phone.

 

[jmm57]

Surprised to see no comments on Glen Taylor's shot at Kevin Love on the way out:

http://www.cbssports.com/nba/eye-on-basketball/24681029/wolves-owner-glen-taylor-opens-up-about-kevin-love-trade

"I question Kevin if this is going to be the best deal for him because I think he's going to be the third player on a team. I don't think he's going to get a lot of credit if they do really well. I think he'll get the blame if they don't do well. He's going to have to learn to handle that.

"I think he's around a couple guys are awful good. Now I'm not saying that Kevin's not good, but I think where maybe he got away with some stuff, not playing defense on our team, I'm not sure how that's going to work in Cleveland. So I would guess they're going to ask him to play more defense. And he's foul-prone," Taylor said.
 

I am not a big Kevin Love guy and didn't want to see the Cavs give up Wiggins/Bennett/1st for him, but he earned some points from me with the way he handled those comments from his former teams owner.

 

[MakMan44]

So dumb. I understand that these guys feel burned when their star player wants out, but just shut up and thank him on his way out. 

 

[LondonSox]

Rich people don't react well to being stood up to. Doesn't happen very often in the real world.

 

[HomeRunBaker]

Greg Anthony interviewing Wolves owner Glen Taylor prior to the start of Minnesota's Day One of training camp.

"Kevin Love announced he wanted to be traded. He is a great guy and a great friend and while I would have loved to have him remain here he chose to leave."

"We were real close with Golden State until they decided not to go ahead with the deal."

 

[ifmanis5]

Love to Boston for Green and Bass passed the NBA Trade Machine. Just leaving that here.



Kevin Love's future is officially getting interesting. Not playing in 4th Q in Orlando??? That's it, I'm cuing up the Trade Machine.
— Bill Simmons (@BillSimmons) December 27, 2014

 

[Devizier]

I could see the Celtics making a deal work with Sullinger and Wright (separate deal) with Green and Bass as filler. Hell, they can have Jameer Nelson for a bag of balls or Dellavedova, their choice.
 
ETA: Honestly, the Cavaliers could have just about the entire Celtics roster if they want. I wouldn't mind.

 

[ifmanis5]

I could see the Celtics making a deal work with Sullinger and Wright (separate deal) with Green and Bass as filler. Hell, they can have Jameer Nelson for a bag of balls or Dellavedova, their choice.
 
ETA: Honestly, the Cavaliers could have just about the entire Celtics roster if they want. I wouldn't mind.

Wright can't be traded with other players due to NBA trade rules. So says the machine.

 

[Devizier]

Wright can't be traded with other players due to NBA trade rules. So says the machine.

 
Separate trade -- they move him for the TPE and the protected Memphis pick.

 

[DeJesus Built My Hotrod]

Do you really want the C's to get Kevin Love? I am struggling with the idea. I think he has been a bit exposed of late but then again as someone pointed out in the other thread, he has been a bad fit in Cleveland.

 

[Blacken]

Do you really want the C's to get Kevin Love? I am struggling with the idea. I think he has been a bit exposed of late but then again as someone pointed out in the other thread, he has been a bad fit in Cleveland.

Kevin Love didn't suddenly become a bad player. In the absolute worst case, you think you couldn't trade him after a season of putting up Minnesota numbers?

 

[MillarTime]

For the pu pu platter described above (Sullinger, Bass, Green, etc.)? Hell yes. Get him, have him rebuild his value with empty stats and deal him off for something really good.

Edit: agree with Blacken.

 

[DeJesus Built My Hotrod]

Kevin Love didn't suddenly become a bad player. In the absolute worst case, you think you couldn't trade him after a season of putting up Minnesota numbers?

Oh I don't think he is bad but I am not sure what value he holds for Boston. He clearly isn't a star who can drag a team into contention - he needs other above average pieces around him like the oft mentioned rim - protector for it to work. The Celtics currently have none of those pieces and its not easy to source them.

 

[Blacken]

Again: you don't think Danny Ainge could parlay a 25/10 season into at least a couple real nice pieces?

 

[zenter]

Again: you don't think Danny Ainge could parlay a 25/10 season into at least a couple real nice pieces?

 
I see two sides of this -
 
1) Cs buy low on Love, he opts-out, but Cs take advantage of his Bird rights.
 
2) Cs buy low on Love, he opts-out, and Cs get half a low-lottery, low-playoff season with 25/10 player who walks to LAL.
 
I know there are a lot of other options here, but these are the two extremes to me. (Like most, I assume Love opts out barring season-ending injury.)
 
[SIZE=13.63636302948px]If #1 comes to pass, then Love + ~20M cap room to make a play at Gasol and/or Leonard is very interesting. Add the 13M exception, and you may be a trade or two away from a top-3 EC team.[/SIZE]
 
[SIZE=13.63636302948px]If #2 comes to pass, Cs waste middle-class players and possibly a pick on what amounts to a short trip down a wayward path. Not the end of the world, but it might prolong the rebuild.[/SIZE]

 

[CaptainLaddie]

EXACTLY.  They're going for a title this year -- Love is a big part.  Considering they just gave up last years #1 pick and this years #1 pick.... they aren't just going to take Jeff Green and Brandon Bass for him.

 

[HomeRunBaker]

EXACTLY.  They're going for a title this year -- Love is a big part.  Considering they just gave up last years #1 pick and this years #1 pick.... they aren't just going to take Jeff Green and Brandon Bass for him.

I love Celtics fans sometimes. When the talk is about acquiring the #3 on a contender for two rentals, one who would never even see the floor, it is certainly one of those times.

Who was the last Celtic to average 17/10 on 57% eFG? (Hint: You have to go back to the mid-80's)

 

[RedOctober3829]

There is absolutely no world in which the Cavs would give up on Kevin Love and trade him at this point. How would Jeff Green help the Cavs? Brandon Bass??? Let's be realistic, folks.

 

[Devizier]

Do you really want the C's to get Kevin Love? I am struggling with the idea. I think he has been a bit exposed of late but then again as someone pointed out in the other thread, he has been a bad fit in Cleveland.

 
The C's are a garbage team. If they can get Love without surrendering their future draft picks, that's a pretty great situation for them to be in -- one that they couldn't have before the season.
 
But like I said, the Cavaliers can have the whole Celtics squad and it isn't enough.

 

[The Social Chair]

EXACTLY.  They're going for a title this year -- Love is a big part.  Considering they just gave up last years #1 pick and this years #1 pick.... they aren't just going to take Jeff Green and Brandon Bass for him.

This can't be said enough. Cleveland is not giving up on the guy they traded Wiggins for.

LeBron is the coach and GM of the Cavs. GM LeBron still wants Love on the team. Coach LeBron scrapped Blatt's offensive system almost right away, and the new offense is struggling with how to use Love. Maybe Coach LeBron will let his assistant Blatt try to figure it out.

 

[Eddie Jurak]

Speaking of Cleveland...
 
https://vine.co/v/OHDjYbBiO9q/embed/simple
 
Perhaps #23 is wondering why he decided to come home...

 

[DeJesus Built My Hotrod]

Speaking of Cleveland...
 
https://vine.co/v/OHDjYbBiO9q/embed/simple
 
Perhaps #23 is wondering why he decided to come home...

That is straight up awesome.

 

[ifmanis5]

Hilarious Vine.
 
Whatever happens in Cleveland goes through LeBron and LeBron the GM is anything from unproven to terrible. If The King irrationally doesn't like playing with Love and irrationally wants to bring in someone he likes then that's what's going to happen. Not saying it's Jeff Green & Bass but all the makings for a big (mistake) move is in play.