Since being drafted fifth overall by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2008 NBA Draft, Kevin Love has been one of the best big men in the NBA. Love possesses an incredible offensive skill set and rebounding ability. He has also been one of the best stretch fours in the league. Through five seasons in the league, Love holds career averages of 19 points, 12 rebounds, and two assists per game. While Love is one of the most talented offensive big men in the league, he struggles on defense. He also has had a history of injuries and has never played a full season. While Love has had tremendous individual success, the Timberwolves have struggled to win games. The Timberwolves have yet to make the playoffs during Love’s tenure.
Over the years Love has grown frustrated with the Timberwolves front office as they have failed to significantly improve the team. It has gotten to a point where Kevin Love has informed the Timberwolves he would not consider resigning after his contract expires in 2015. And thus, one of the NBA’s best players is on the trade block. While nearly every team in the NBA would love to have Love on their team, there are only a few that would have the resources to do so. Here are the most likely trade destinations for Kevin Love.
Golden State Warriors
The Warriors appear to be one of the top contenders to add Love. They are an extremely talented team and would certain provide Kevin Love the success he has desired. The Warriors also have plenty of assets to offer the Timberwolves. Young players like Klay Thompson and Harrison Barnes would be very attractive to the Timberwolves. David Lee would almost certainly be included in the trade as well. The only thing the Warriors couldn’t offer the Timberwolves would be draft picks. They currently have no first round picks this year and would only be able to trade their 2015 pick after the 2014 draft.
A team of Stephen Curry, Andre Iguodala, Kevin Love, and potentially Klay Thompson would be a nearly unstoppable offensive juggernaut. While this probably isn’t the best offer the Timberwolves could receive, they could potentially get some very good players ready to make an immediate impact.
Boston Celtics
The Celtics are another team that has emerged as favorites to land the talented big man. The addition of Love would certainly quick-start Boston’s rebuild and give Love the big city stardom he wants. The Celtics also have plenty of assets to offer the Timberwolves. The Celtics have the sixth overall pick in this year’s draft. That alone should be very appealing as this draft is loaded with potential all-stars. The Celtics also have numerous young players they could offer. Players like Jared Sullinger, Jeff Green, Avery Bradley and Brandon Bass could all be enticing to the Timberwolves.
The addition of Kevin Love would immediately elevate the Celtics in the East. Depending on who exactly the Celtics would give up, the Celtics could have a great core to build around. The addition of Love may also be enough to convince Rajon Rondo to stick around. The Celtics also have plenty of draft picks in the coming years, giving them enough resources to continue to build or go out and acquire another star.
Phoenix Suns
The Suns have plenty of draft picks to make a convincing offer to the Timberwolves. The Suns currently have the 14th, 18th, 27th, and the Lakers 2015 pick. While none of these picks would give the Timberwolves a chance to grab one of the top prospects, it gives them plenty of flexibility. In terms of actual players the Suns could offer, there are few that would really stand out. Unless the Suns are prepared to offer Goran Dragic or Eric Bledsoe, the only players that would be attractive to the Timberwolves are Archie Goodwin, Channing Frye, Marcus Morris, and Markieff Morris. This offer doesn’t provide a lot of star potential for the Timberwolves, however; it does give them plenty of flexibility and future assets.
Kevin Love would provide the Suns with a legitimate post player and another offensive weapon. This move would certainly push the Suns to the next level and put them in a position to truly compete in the West. Plus, a three pronged attack of Dragic, Bledsoe, and Love would be extremely entertaining.
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cavs are new entries into the Love sweepstakes, however; they have a lot to offer the Timberwolves. The Cavs were blessed once again by the lottery gods as they received the first overall pick in this year’s draft despite just 1.7 percent odds. This good fortune gave the Cavs a great opportunity to present an offer for Kevin Love. Having the first overall selection would allow the Timberwolves to have their pick of potential stars. The Cavs also have numerous other young players to offer the Timberwolves including Anthony Bennett, Alonzo Gee, Tristan Thompson, and Dion Waiters. Cleveland certainly has the pieces to field a competitive offer to the Timberwolves, however; getting Kevin Love to resign in Cleveland would be a major hurdle. Cleveland has also not experienced the kind of success other teams have, making it a much less desirable location.
With the acquisition of Love, on would think the Cavaliers could compete in the East. However, years of underachieving makes it harder to predict just how successful this team could be. A combination of Kyrie Irving and Love would be a deadly offensive pairing, plus Anderson Varejao and Love would absolutely dominate on the glass.
Los Angeles Lakers
Kevin Love’s trade demands actually hurt the Lakers in this instance. The Lakers seemed almost certain to land Love in free agency in 2015 as they would have plenty of cap room and give Love the opportunity to return home. Love himself has expressed interest in playing for the hometown Lakers. But now, the Lakers are in an unfortunate position. They simply have no assets to offer the Timberwolves outside of the seventh pick in this year’s draft. In fact, the Lakers only have three players under contract for next season. The Lakers appear to have very little to offer the Timberwolves, especially when compared to the offers other teams could make.
While a trade with the Lakers would be unlikely, it would put Kevin Love in a great position. He would be the star in basketballs biggest city, plus the Lakers would have plenty of cap room to sign other stars in free agency in the coming years. The Lakers would be able to successful ride out the end of Kobe Bryant’s career while ushering in a new era led by Kevin Love.
Chicago Bulls
The Bulls are another team that could make a run for Kevin Love. Love has expressed an interest in playing in Chicago; it’d just depend on whether the Bulls could field a competitive offer. The Bulls currently have the 16th and 19th picks in this year’s draft. They also have players like Jimmy Butler, Taj Gibson, and Tony Snell. It is unclear if these players and picks could interest the Timberwolves enough to get the offer done. This offer is very similar to the Phoenix Suns offer; it would not provide any star potential but would offer plenty of young assets.
Assuming they could all stay healthy, this trade would greatly improve the Bulls. A trio of Derrick Rose, Kevin Love, and Joakim Noah would immediate allow the Bulls to compete in the East. It would also solve their offensive struggles as Kevin Love would add an immediate presence offensively. The Bulls strong team defense would also be enough to cover up any of Love’s defensive deficiencies. It would however, present a huge risk as it would add another injury prone star. It would also handicap the team financially for many years.
Houston Rockets
The Rockets could field a very competitive offer for Kevin Love, which is a scary thought. The Rockets currently have the 25th pick in this year’s draft, however; their most appealing piece would be Chandler Parsons. Parsons would almost certainly be involved in the trade, and would give the Timberwolves a great young wing player. The Rockets could also offer Terrence Jones, Omer Asik, Patrick Beverley, Jeremy Lin, or Troy Daniels if they appealed to Minnesota.
The addition of Love would give the Rockets a nearly unstoppable offensive attack. In addition to the offensive potential, the Rockets would possess two of the best rebounders in the NBA. Dwight Howard and Love would also complement each other beautifully as Love prefers to play on the outside while Howard dominates on the inside. While the Rockets offenses would be unstoppable, their defense would struggle to stop anyone. Kevin Love would only add to an offensive oriented team.
There are many teams interested in adding Kevin Love, but there are only a few that could field competitive offers. The biggest deciding factor would be on whether Kevin Love would agree to sign an extension with his new team. After the Dwight Howard-Lakers fiasco, there are very few teams who would be willing to trust in Love resigning. If Kevin Love chooses to be difficult, there could be many teams who would not be willing to trade for a one year rental, forcing the Timberwolves to take a less favorable offer. While certain teams have emerged as favorites, there is no one clear cut choice. Through all the uncertainty one thing is clear. Kevin Love will soon be on the move.