5 Potential Kevin Love Trades

The furor over Kevin Love’s on-court temper tantrum has subsided. It’s not entirely clear who or what caused the frustration to boil over, but the obvious candidates are the passing-challenged Collin Sexton, or the new coach John Beilein. Beilein himself took responsibility for failing to recognize that Love had a mismatch on Chris Paul, but it’s all beside the point: Kevin Love is not happy on a tanking Cleveland Cavaliers team, and he’s not appealing to opposing teams while he shows up his teammates and coach on the court.

Love came pretty close to acknowledging this, apologizing publicly and saying that whether he’s in Cleveland for five more weeks, or five more months, he owes it to the team to be a professional. For a guy under contract for three more years after this one, his message was clear - I’ll be a good soldier, but it’s time to go. Once again though, therein lies the problem. Love is owed north of $90 million over three years after this one, and will turn 32 in September. He hasn’t played over 60 games in a season since 2015-16. He’s been a productive player on a championship team, but it wasn’t clear that he was a difference-maker on the highest stage. 

Okay, maybe now it’s getting unfair. Those Warriors teams were insane, and they were built in away that uniquely devalued Love’s contributions. At the moment, that Golden State team doesn’t exist. Love is averaging 17 and 10 with a young guard in Darius Garland that is the best kind of project, but a project all the same, and a combo guard in Collin Sexton that must master the passing part of what makes someone a combo guard. He’s clearly the best player on a Cavs team that might challenge some of the worst teams of all time simply on account of their youth if he wasn’t there. In a league where the talent is dispersed more evenly than it’s been since the mid-00’s, it’s possible teams think Love is a solution.  

Either way, it’s time for me to stop stalling. You’re here for Kevin Love destinations. Here are five trades that make sense for Love, the Cavs, and his destination. Let’s start with a spicy one.

Kevin Love and two 2nd round picks (or a 2023 lottery protected 1st) for Spencer Dinwiddie, DeAndre Jordan, and Garrett Temple

For Brooklyn, Spencer Dinwiddie is simply too good for a super-sub role, and too ball-dominant to be a long term fit between Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. Too much usage, not enough defense. Jordan came over as something of a package deal with Irving and Durant, but perhaps those guys would recognize that Love is a better fit with Jarrett Allen on board, or simply that he’s just a better player than Jordan. This does, however, present a big risk for the Nets. In the short term, it could make the team competitive for a run through the Eastern Conference playoffs if Irving and Love click, and then next year they’d almost recreate what the Cavs had with Irving, LeBron James, and Love - you’d just sub in Durant. The Nets aren’t likely to have much salary cap flexibility, with Caris LeVert's extension kicking in this summer. Is this the gamble General Manager Sean Marks is comfortable with? 

If you’re the Cavs, it would hurt to give up future picks, but you can sell the fanbase on Dinwiddie. He’s not particularly efficient and he needs the ball, but he has decent size and could pair well with Darius Garland. The Cavs still haven’t conceded that they are in a full-blown rebuilt, it’s just sort of happening, so a trade where they pick up usable pieces makes some sense.

Kevin Love and a top 10 protected pick in 2022 for Gordon Hayward

A trade in this vein might have made more sense last summer (and cost less for the Cavs). Hayward has been good, and is under contract for just one more season. At one point, Hayward’s contract felt like an albatross, but that’s no longer the case - even if it’s still pricey at $34 million plus for next season. In the meantime, he’s younger than Love and has gotten back to his ways as a jack-of-all-trades positive offensive force. He doesn’t monopolize possessions but he scores efficiently and can do some playmaking.

The Cavs would get a wing they desperately need, and could sell fans on the fact that they might be getting Milwaukee’s first in 2022 anyway (note: that doesn’t make trading their own pick smart). Boston could feel like even if Love isn’t a huge upgrade on Hayward in a vacuum, he’s a better fit for what they need and would pair well with Kemba Walker. I’m not sure this makes sense for either team, but you never know. 

Kevin Love and John Henson for James Johnson, Dion Waiters, Kelly Olynyk, and Miami’s 2020 first round pick

It would be easy to put Goran Dragic in this deal, but that wouldn’t exactly mesh with the idea that the Heat are trying to win now. They’ve been a success story this season, but none of the outgoing players have been consistently helpful for them. Kevin Love immediately provides an upgrade on Meyers Leonard in the starting lineup. At the same time, this deal saves them a little bit of money and gets them closer to avoiding the luxury tax. Getting out from both the contract and failed marriage with Dion Waiters provides an incentive for the deal as well. 

For the Cavs, it’s about adding another first round pick. Kelly Olynyk could serve as an approximation of some of Love’s skills as the team finishes the season. I know there are still a few Cavs fans that miss Dion Waiters, so that reunion would be fun too.  

Kevin Love and Matthew Dellavedova for C.J. McCollum and Kent Bazemore

This trade would in some ways be a bit of a reset for the Blazers while still giving them a chance to compete for a playoff spot this season. McCollum has underwhelmed a bit - he’s not particularly efficient, though he doesn’t turn the ball over very often or dominate the ball to the point that it’s an issue with Damian Lillard. Still, the Blazers are way over the luxury tax level, and this deal saves them some serious money. It would actually take the Cavs over the tax level, so they’d need to have another deal lined up to save approximately $2.5 million. Given their plethora of expiring deals, it shouldn’t be that hard. 

With Hassan Whiteside enjoying a bit of a renaissance, Kevin Love could be a nice fit. The Cavs would get a fun guard next to Darius Garland, and it’d help that McCollum is a Northeast Ohioan that happens to be a die-hard Browns fan. 

Phoenix or Denver provide obvious destinations for Love, but let’s look at one more that’s a little more exciting. 

Kevin Love and a 2021 top five protected first round pick for D’Angelo Russell and Jordan Poole

This trade probably doesn’t make much sense until the summer, and it’s likely that the Warriors could find something a bit more appealing for Russell. But a core of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, and Kevin Love is pretty interesting. Before they thought Kevin Love was irrelevant the Warriors tried pretty hard to acquire him. The Cavs would not be able to trade their 2021 first until after they officially use their 2020 first because if it doesn’t fall in the top 10 it goes to Atlanta and you can’t trade your first round pick in back to back years. 

For the Cavs, this gives you an exciting young guard with some length that could potentially play with Darius Garland. Whether it’s worth a high pick is arguable, but you might need to be willing to give it up given interest around the league in Russell. Will this happen? No. Would it produce some fun conversations? I think so.