So what happens when Love comes to town? The Cavaliers are hoping it leads to an NBA championship one day soon.
photo courtesy of bleacher report
U2 and B.B King sang about it years ago. Everybody else has been talking about it recently. And now the biggest trade in the NBA this off season finally happened. Love is coming to town.
Cleveland has acquired Kevin Love from Minnesota for this year’s first overall pick, Andrew Wiggins, last year’s #1 pick Anthony Bennett and a 2015 first round draft pick they acquired from Miami as part of the LeBron James trade back in 2010.
Per ESPN.com and Yahoo Sports, the Timberwolves also get power forward Thaddeus Young from Philadelphia and a reported $6.3 million trade exception as part of this three team swap, and in turn will send Luc Mbah a Moute and Alexey Shved plus a first-round pick to the 76ers.
photo courtesy of thebiglead.com
Love, just 25 years old, comes to Cleveland and gets to reunite with Olympic teammate LeBron James and street ball teammate “Uncle Drew”, Kyrie Irving. It creates a “Big 3” that Cleveland has been looking for since “King James” first tenure with the Cavaliers.
Love averaged over 26 points per game along with 12 rebounds a game last season for the Timberwolves, while also dishing out over 4 assists per contest.
photo courtesy of unz.com
Love gives Cleveland three different 20 points per game scorers in David Blatt’s starting lineup which right now looks like Irving at the point, Dion Waiters at shooting guard, James at small forward, Love at power forward and Anderson Varejao at center.
It’s no secret that LeBron James wanted Love in Cleveland as he spoke highly of his high basketball IQ and what a great teammate he was in the 2012 London Olympics at his recent homecoming party in Akron, Ohio. James and Love helped Team USA win the gold medal in London.
On the flipside, James never spoke to, or about Andrew Wiggins, and didn’t mention him in his Sports Illustrated essay when he announced he was returning home to Cleveland. So the writing was on the wall that James had no problem with the Cavs dealing Wiggins, a possible future All-Star, for Love, already an All-Star 3 times over and a 2-Time All-NBA second teamer.
For Wiggins, a kid with enormous potential, he finally gets to call someplace home as he goes to Minnesota and will be the focal point in their rebuilding process.
Bennett will get a fresh start with the T-Wolves after having a disastrous rookie season a year ago, after he was selected first overall.
Love can opt out of his contract and be a free agent at the end of the 2014-15 season and like LeBron James, will probably do so. It will allow Love and James to take advantage of getting a max deal worth max dollars after a new TV contract is expected to be signed by the NBA, which would then raise the league’s salary cap and max free agents will be able to make more money on those deals.
Love will wear the number #0 and you can already buy his jersey at the Cavaliers Team Shop at Quicken Loans Arena.
A press conference to introduce Love to the media will be held on Tuesday, August 26th at 3pm at Cleveland Clinic Courts.
