When LeBron James left for the second time in the summer of 2018, the Cleveland Cavaliers decided to remain competitive instead of undergoing a full-scale rebuild and made Kevin Love the new face of the franchise. That included giving him a massive contract extension. Unfortunately, that seemed to be a bad decision for the Cavaliers. Under Love’s leadership, Cleveland turned from a legitimate title contender into one of the worst NBA teams in the league. With the Cavaliers once again set to suffer a huge disappointment in the 2020-21 NBA season, they are finally expected to part ways with Love this summer.
It’s already a public knowledge all around the league that the Cavaliers would try to trade Love in the 2020 NBA offseason. However, according to Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype , if they are determined to find a trade partner for Love, the Cavaliers should “lower their asking price” for the All-Star power forward.
“The Cavaliers were hoping to increase his trade value when they signed him to a four-year extension worth $120 million but so far it has backfired. That isn’t to say he is untradeable, but if they were hoping to acquire several young players and first-round picks, they may need to lower their asking price. With big men slowly getting pushed out, Love could prosper as a small-ball center offensively. Defensively he is a liability, and because of his $31.3 million salary, it is no wonder some teams are asking the Cavaliers for a pick in order to trade for Love.”
Once he becomes officially available on the trading block, several NBA teams who are in dire need of additional star power to contend for the NBA championship title are expected to express a strong interest in adding him to their roster. Love may not be on the level of LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Kawhi Leonard, and Stephen Curry. However, he’s one of the few superstars in the league who’s capable of excelling in an off-ball capacity, making him an ideal fit to NBA teams who already have one or two ball-dominant superstars on their roster.
Despite this, the Cavaliers should be realistic with what they are asking for Love. While Love could contribute to legitimate title contenders, trading for him comes with a huge risk. Aside from his lucrative contract that runs until the 2022-23 NBA season, Love has already dealt with numerous injuries in the past and is yet to address his defensive issues. It’s understandable for the Cavaliers to wait for the offers to improve, but Gozlan doesn’t think that there will be an NBA team that would pay their current asking price. Gozlan believes that the Cavaliers should immediately accept the offer if an NBA team includes a young player or a future first-round pick in the trade package.