This is encouraging, Kevin Love wants to remain in Cleveland. This is the complete opposite of a narrative many have been pushing for a long time. Since coming to the Cavaliers in 2014, people have seemingly been trying to push him out the door. A storyline that has been tired for quite some time.
The trade rumors involving Kevin Love reached a fever pitch prior to last season. After signing his contract extension, the thought from some was that the Cavaliers world trade Love. The idea being that Cleveland is not a team that is contending and that they should ship him elsewhere in order to play for a winning team.
The only issue with this thought from the Cavaliers point of view is that this removes the transition period from the equation. Yes, the team is obviously not the same since LeBron James left. However, the proper way to move into the next phase is with proper planning and that involves handling the transition period correctly. Dumping their best player for the sake of tanking is not the best plan. Instead, Cleveland shipped out older players on expiring contracts in order to get their books in better shape for the future.
A trade of Kevin Love is not the same as previous trades. Cleveland would be in a tough position talent-wise and reliant on young players to carry the team.
Would trading players such as Kevin Love and Tristan Thompson take some of the burden from the Cavaliers financially? Absolutely. Cleveland would also be able to get a nice return involving picks and players. It would also put the team in a downward spiral that is difficult to get out of and usually is only saved by a generational talent being drafted. A task that is near impossible.
Right now Kevin Love is Cleveland’s best player and will help the younger core of players adjust to the NBA and guide them as they continue to grow.
The Cleveland Cavaliers are not contenders this season. Cleveland is also not going to contend next season. To properly get back into a state of contending, a team must properly navigate the transition period and not rush this process. A team easily find themselves going nowhere fast by attempting to speed things up when it is not necessary.
