Kevin Love will rep Cavs in HOF if he makes it: ‘I take a lot of pride in that’

It’s hard to argue that big man Kevin Love’s most dominant days in the NBA weren’t with the Minnesota Timberwolves. Love earned three of his five career All-Star appearances during his Wolves tenure, and the only seasons in which he earned All-NBA nods and MVP consideration came during his stint in Minnesota.

Still, Love made it clear that if he goes on to be enshrined in the Hall of Fame in Massachusetts, he will be repping another NBA team: the Cleveland Cavaliers.

“It would mean a lot,” he said of getting his number retired by the Cavs. “I mean, there’s so many historic names that are up there. Whether it’s obviously LeBron [James], Kyrie [Irving], those guys will go up there. But Nate Thurmond, Bingo Smith, Austin Carr, Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Larry Nance — there’s just so many names up there that it would truly be an honor to go up there. And listen, if I were ever to make it and to go into the Hall of Fame, I would go in as a Cavalier. And I think that is — I take a lot of pride in that.”

Stats alone don’t define a player’s legacy, and for as much as Love stuffed the stat sheet in Minnesota, he didn’t enjoy much winning with the squad. He didn’t so much as appear in a single playoff game with the Timberwolves despite the fact that he spent his opening six seasons in the NBA with the franchise.

While Love didn’t put up the biggest numbers of his career as a Cavalier, he served as an excellent complementary star next to James and Irving on some winning teams during James’ second act in Cleveland. Across James’ four-year stint, Love averaged 17.1 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. He shot 37.7 percent from 3-point range in that time as a highly valuable floor spacer next to one of the league’s all-time greats.

Love, James and Irving were a trio for three years on the Cavs before Irving departed. That left Love and James as an Irving-less duo in the 2017-18 campaign, which was James’ last season with Cleveland.

The Cavs managed to qualify for the NBA Finals in four straight years from 2015 through 2018. Love was instrumental to them winning their first title in franchise history back in 2016 with what he brought to the table as a scorer and rebounder.

Love may very well end up in the Hall of Fame one day, but if he does, it won’t be in the immediate future, as his NBA career is still going. He’s playing for the Utah Jazz this season and has suited up in six games so far in the 2025-26 campaign.