With the Cleveland Cavaliers unable to trade Kevin Love, the team now appears ready to use the veteran big man much like the Brooklyn Nets are using Blake Griffin.
Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com noted that the Cavaliers are pondering whether or not to use the often-injured Love as a reserve center.
“The Cavs owe Kevin Love $60 million over the next two years — and there’s no easy way out of that situation,” Fedor wrote. “There’s been conversation about limiting his role and minutes to maximize effectiveness. The organization has also discussed the possibility of using Love as the backup center — a la Blake Griffin in Brooklyn — to boost shooting and spacing while allowing rookie Evan Mobley and Nance to gobble up most of the minutes at 4.”
When healthy, Love has shown the ability to deliver double-doubles on a nightly basis. The problem is that, in recent years, he’s missed a large number of games, which has turned his contract into a huge albatross the Cavs can’t remove from their balance sheet.
It’s uncertain how well Love would perform in that role, given the often-bruising action that takes place under the boards combined with the fragile health of the soon-to-be 33-year-old.
The Cavaliers have been unable to deal Love away and appear to have no intention of eating his remaining contract. That means that they need to get the most value out of him, which at this point could be aiding in the development of the team’s younger players.
The hope is that if the Cavs undertake this approach, they’ll be able to finally move forward after three miserable seasons in a row.
