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Trail Blazers Trade Buzz: The Kevin Love Question

By Steven Dewald

June 2, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) moves the ball against Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) during the first half in game one of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
June 2, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) moves the ball against Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) during the first half in game one of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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June 2, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) moves the ball against Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) during the first half in game one of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /

Trail Blazers Trade Buzz: Would Kevin Love find success in Portland?

The Cav’s seem to be careening towards another NBA Finals defeat and it appears that Kevin Love will become the scapegoat. Cleveland has minimal flexibility in the upcoming free agency period, so a trade involving Love might be their best shot at upgrading their roster. The Trail Blazers would make for an intriguing home for his services, but would it be the right fit?

Love has become a very polarizing figure in his eight seasons in the NBA. At times he looks like the prototype power forward, and other times he appears to be the classic “good stats – bad team” player. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle, as a case can be made on both sides. Either way, the frustration has seemed to reach its boiling point in Cleveland.

After two subpar performances to start the series against the Warriors, Love was sidelined with a concussion for game three. According to Marc Stein, he was not thrilled about being held out of Cleveland’s first home game of the Finals. His case for becoming the fall-guy for the Cav’s became stronger after that night, as Cleveland won the game in emphatic fashion. The Warriors have had their struggles in the first away game in all of their series so far this postseason, but that point will likely be overlooked by most NBA fans.

The Cav’s are extremely close to bringing home a NBA Championship, so a drastic roster turnover isn’t likely. Swapping Love for some valuable pieces in return should be on the table though. LeBron James is proving to be at the height of his game while playing the power forward position, so finding competent wing players will likely top the list. This is where Neil Olshey and the Trail Blazers could come into play.

Portland has fairly deep perimeter rotation, which could make them an ideal trade partner. C.J. McCollum is coming off of a great year and Allen Crabbe has proved to be a solid “3 & D” guy. Either player would likely join the starting rotation immediately for the Cav’s, but would it be worth the sacrifice for Portland?

We will attempt to make a case for both sides of the argument in the next few slides.

Next: The Case For Kevin Love