Caleb Love is already making a significant impact for the Portland Trail Blazers as an undrafted rookie who joined the roster on a two-way contract. He was the clear X-Factor in Portland's road upset over the Golden State Warriors, finishing with 26 points, seven rebounds, and five assists on 9-of-20 shooting from the field and 6-of-14 from beyond the arc.
Love logged an absurd 38 minutes as the Blazers were severely shorthanded, particularly in the backcourt, with Jrue Holiday, Scoot Henderson, Shaedon Sharpe, Blake Wesley, and Damian Lillard all sidelined. The 127-123 win now surprisingly puts the Blazers at 2-1 in the NBA Cup, tied with the Denver Nuggets for the best record in the "Group of Death". With a previous win over Denver, Portland also holds the head-to-head tiebreaker.
This is a position few expected them to be in, especially thanks to a two-way player. Love heading to Portland was one of the first two-way signings ESPN's Shams Charania announced following the 2025 NBA Draft. At the time, he referred to Love as "one of the most prolific scorers in college basketball." We just saw that high-level scoring translate to the NBA at a time when Portland needed it the most.
Caleb Love is providing the offensive spark Portland desperately needed
Interim head coach Tiago Splitter prefers quick rotations and a deep bench to keep players fresh and able to expend energy. He didn't have that luxury in this contest, essentially playing an eight-man rotation. Fortunately, they were able to generate offense from unexpected sources, with Love emerging as the secondary offensive initiator alongside Deni Avdija.
Prior to that win, Portland had lost six of its last seven games and was on an active four-game losing streak. With their next stretch coming against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Milwaukee Bucks, and San Antonio Spurs, they were in dangerous territory of letting this losing streak build up, especially considering the ongoing injuries.
It hasn't all been pretty for Love to start his rookie campaign, as he's averaging 8.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 2.3 assists on inefficient 34/27/83 shooting splits. He even shot 1-of-12 from the field in Portland's heartbreaking loss to the Chicago Bulls the game prior. But, as this timely win over Golden State showed, the Blazers need someone like Love, who is fearless on the offensive end.
He's filling the Dalano Banton role as an inefficient scorer who still provides value to a lackluster (and depleted) Blazers offense. As was the case with Banton last season, there's going to be times where Love gets hot and flips the script on a game.
That was viewed as a luxury when Love initially signed with Portland, but it has quickly turned into a necessity due to all the injuries. The Blazers desperately needed someone to step up and generate offense, and Love rose to the occasion.