It might not come as a great shock, but the relationship between Kevin Love and the Cleveland Cavaliers’ decision-makers is currently “strained,” according to a report.
Love was removed from the team’s rotation earlier this year, and his time with the franchise recently came to an end after the two sides agreed to a contract buyout.
Though the organization has already made it clear that it plans to eventually retire Love’s No. 0 uniform, it appears as though there may need to be a bit of a cooling-off period between the two sides.
“Sources say Love’s relationship with Cleveland’s decision-makers is currently strained — a byproduct of how recent events unfolded,” Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com reported. “The Cavs were starting to grow concerned about his unhappiness festering, especially since there were no plans to re-insert him into the lineup. With about two months remaining in the regular season, the ticklish situation could have led to another infamous blowup. It’s one reason the Cavs were so willing to honor his buyout request. His unquantifiable impact on the organization over the years is another.”
It’s very easy to understand why Cavs leadership was willing to let Love go if it felt that his unhappiness could start to fester. The team is just a couple months away from potentially ending the playoff drought that has been alive since LeBron James’ departure in 2018.
The team seemed well on its way to a playoff appearance last year, and it did end up advancing into the play-in tournament, but it could not take advantage of the opportunity and failed to break into the playoff bracket.
Still, that kind of forward momentum was considered major progress for a team that had been in the league’s basement for multiple seasons.
This season, a play-in berth would be seen as a major failure for Cleveland. The Cavs are currently sitting at the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference and have a 2.5-game lead for the spot. Meanwhile, they’re two games back from the No. 3 seed.
Love will always be a beloved member of the Cavs family. He stuck with the team through some pretty tough times, and he also played a major role in the franchise’s pinnacle moment back in 2016.
So, while things might be strained now, the hope is certainly that time will heal these wounds, allowing the two sides to reconcile in the near future.
