Kevin Love, Amid Trade Talk, Is Finding a Way to Fit In

Whether the team can find a new employer for Love is one of the more intriguing questions ahead of the league’s Feb. 6 trade deadline. Complicating matters: He is in the first year of a four-year, $120 million contract extension that he signed before the start of last season, back when it seemed more plausible that the Cavaliers could build around him.

Those days, though, are long gone. Love missed most of last season with injuries, and the Cavaliers are 12-29 after losing back-to-back games against the Lakers and the Clippers this week. Cleveland’s future is tied to the development of first- and second-year players like Darius Garland and Collin Sexton. As it should be.

“I don’t know what the next few weeks are going to hold,” Love told reporters earlier this month, referring to the trade deadline, “and this has been a frustrating situation, and I know that this is a team that’s rebuilding and wants to go young. I’ve accepted that.”

The problem is that Love’s contract will be difficult, if not impossible, for the Cavaliers to move. It is guaranteed through the 2022-23 season, when he is due to earn $29 million at age 34. Few teams have the financial flexibility to absorb that type of contract in the first place, and in addition they would need to be a willing to commit to an aging player with an injury history. No one can blame Love for taking the Cavaliers’ millions when they offered him the extension, but now they are stuck with each other — for now, if not forever.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/16/sports/basketball/kevin-love-cavaliers-lebron-trade.html?emc=rss&partner=rss