Kevin Love and the Cleveland Cavaliers are parting ways, with the Miami Heat expected to be the favorite landing spot of the veteran big man, according to sources of Shams Charania of The Athletic.
āThe Cleveland Cavaliers and Kevin Love are finalizing a contract buyout, with the Miami Heat expected to emerge as a suitor for the five-time All-Star should the sides finalize parting ways, league sources tell The Athletic.ā
Itās been nearly 10 years since Kevin Love became a Cavalier, with the Minnesota Timberwolves trading him to Cleveland in August 2014 as part of a three-team deal that got the Tāwolves the pair of Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett.
The 34-year-old Kevin Love has seen his role with the Cavs diminish this season, as Cleveland has gone heavy on the tandem of their much younger big men in Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen. Love has also been sidelined by a recent issue with his back.
Cavs fans, of course, have strong feelings about the sudden departure of Kevin Love from The Land.
Love is seeing just an average of 20.0 minutes per game this season, on pace to be his fewest since he entered the NBA in 2008 as a first-round pick (fifth overall) by the Memphis Grizzlies, who would immediately trade him to the Timberwolves, with whom he enjoyed his best individual years. But it is with the Cavs where Love has experienced the highest of highs from a team standpoint, as he was a major piece of the historic Cleveland team that successfully overcame a 3-1 deficit in the 2016 NBA Finals against the dynastic Golden State Warriors.
Love signed a four-year extension deal with the Cavs in 2018.