There were several times during the 2014-2015 season when it appeared Kevin Love would be a one-year rental for the Cleveland Cavaliers. Yet here he is, and LeBron James, David Blatt and the rest of the Cavs are expecting an entirely different Love going forward.
Or, should we say, the old Love.
“I just think he’s more comfortable in the situation that he’s in,” LeBron told reporters after practice Wednesday, per Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com. “He’s got a year under his belt; he knows what he expects out of himself and what his teammates expect out of him. I expect big things from him this year with a year up under his belt.”
The Cavs have been open about their plans to give James more rest this season after he averaged 42.2 minutes per game in what was a very long postseason. If Love can revert back to the form that earned him three All-Star appearances from 2011-2014, that shouldn’t create any issues for Cleveland.
After averaging 16.4 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game last season, Love finally appeared to his his stride in the playoffs. Then he got hurt, and LeBron feels the injury helped Love realize his importance to the team.
“I think him being out showed even more of what he means to this team, more than him being on the floor for those (playoff) games,” James said. “It would’ve been huge for us obviously if he was in the lineup, but it gave him the opportunity to put things in perspective and see what his presence can mean to our team. Sometimes you have to take a step backwards to see how important you are.”
LeBron almost carried the Cavs to a championship by himself when Love and Kyrie Irving both went down, but he needed help against the Golden State Warriors. Love is confident he can provide it this year.
“I think all of us will be more comfortable with what we’re trying to do out there,” he said. “I think that, like I said [Monday], it all starts with the big man, No. 23, and it all kind of trickles down from there. I think if all the pieces fit together as we expect, we’ll be a tough team to deal with.”
Unless LeBron was being sarcastic with this tweet over the summer, it appears any tension that existed between him and Love last season has subsided. That in itself is a step in the right direction.
