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Report: Cavs Looking to Package Kevin Love and 8th Pick on Draft Night
- Updated: June 19, 2018
The NBA draft is set for Thursday night with the Cleveland Cavaliers currently looking at their options for the evening. They hold the eighth overall pick in that selection process, but according to ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski, the team has a desire to offer that pick along with veteran forward Kevin Love in a trade.
Woj: Cleveland would love to package Kevin Love + #8 and get something on draft night, but that package likely won't get them the star player they're hoping for. Notes Kevin Love's value is down and the Brooklyn first round pick is not as good as Cleveland had expected.
— Sagar Trika (@BlazersBySagar) June 19, 2018
Love, who turns 30 in September, was limited by injury and played just 59 games during the past regular season. He averaged 17.6 points and 9.3 rebounds per game, playing at both power forward and center during the course of the year.
In the Eastern Conference Finals, Love was put into concussion protocol after leaving Game 6 of that series after sustaining a blow to the head just five minutes into the game. He subsequently missed the Game 7 matchup won by the Cavaliers two nights later.
The Cavaliers acquired that pick, originally the property of the Brooklyn Nets, from the Boston Celtics as part of last August’s Kyrie Irving trade. At the time of the deal, the expectation was that the pick could potentially be the top overall pick or within the first three or four spots. However, the combination of a number of other bad teams and slight improvement by the Nets ended up placing the pick at the eighth spot.
While Love’s numbers were down from his performance during the 2016-17 campaign, he still managed to average a virtual double-double on the year. If Cleveland were to pull the trigger on such a deal, it could affect the pending free-agency decision of LeBron James. After returning to the Cavaliers four years ago, James pushed for the Cavaliers to acquire Love from the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Since that time, James has largely been supportive of Love, despite frequent criticism being directed at his teammate. In addition, during these past four years, rumors of Love being traded elsewhere have periodically surfaced. Obviously, none have come true, which could once again mean that this story never rises above the rumor stage.
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