Currently fifth in the Eastern Conference, two small wins from the defending champion, the Cavs are clearly one of the surprise teams of the season. With their large five majors, against the tide of small ball which has spread like wildfire in recent years, Cleveland continues to defy the odds and could well prove to be an interesting candidate in the next playoffs.
In any case, within this youth in full progression, it is Kevin Love who lives again! Grumpy veteran in recent years, to the point of being noticed with strange media outings or downright humorous gestures on the field, Love is nothing more than love and joie de vivre this season.
“I really enjoy it. Frankly, for me, it’s a bit like when I saw The Last Dance for the first time, it makes you want to go to the room, play and work and build something “, explains Love in the JJ Redick Podcast. “With these guys, I’m happy to come to work. We want to succeed and we developed an identity together, it wasn’t forced, it happened naturally. Our degree of communication is at a very high level, and it all starts from JB [Bickerstaff] who is a very good communicator and who made it clear what we wanted to put in place for the team. Everyone celebrates everyone. I think we are one of the teams where we want the success of our teammates the most. I must say that apart from the 2015-16 team, I was talking about it with Channing [Frye] the other day, I don’t think I’ve had as much fun in the NBA as I did on this team, with these guys growing and this leadership role that I have with them. “
“In recent years, I was more of a grumpy veteran and it showed”
Building on the joint success of Jarrett Allen on the backboard and Darius Garland on the outside, the Cavs have a well-rounded roster and All Star-level talent that’s definitely coming into its own this season. For Love, it’s finally time to take full advantage, in this promising collective in training, after two or three seasons of (very) lean cow.
“We have guys who agree to be coached, who really want to achieve something and who seek to be respected. We play a type of basketball that is really fun. Winning solves all the problems at this level, because in recent years, I was rather the grumpy veteran and it showed. I had moments not very glorious, others a little more. But that’s what the NBA is supposed to produce, that kind of group cohesion that we have right now. It’s really beautiful to see from the inside, how our guys go through the stages together, without skipping any. “
Falling to 12 points and 7 rebounds on average last season, his lowest statistical productions since his rookie season, Love has regained his colors this year as the 6th man, at 14 points and 7 rebounds, with success percentages on the rise (43% on shots including 40% at 3-pointers). The difference ? The understanding between the players and the general good atmosphere of the Cavs this season.
“When I look back, and when players in general look back on their lives and their careers, I often hear: I don’t regret anything, I wouldn’t change a single thing. To me, that’s bullshit! Of course yes, we would do some things differently. Very often, my emotions took over. I said things before I took the time to digest them. These are times when you learn and mature. These are things that I regret but that I am happy that they happened at the same time because I became better for it. As a communicator, as a leader, as a fiancé… This has helped me in many areas of my life. “
Almost “family” ties with JB Bickerstaff
Arriving in Ohio in 2014, Love is getting to know the Cleveland franchise well. But this year, all the stars seem to have aligned to create something special. A separate season. And it all started with the appointment of JB Bickerstaff as head coach following the hasty departure of John Beilein in February 2020.
“With JB, we have known each other forever, so to speak. He’s an extension of my own family actually. Our families have known each other since the 70s when my dad played in the League and met Bernie there. [le père de JB]. All of this helped me to really invest myself in this team in a leadership role, and in my role off the bench to bring a big plus over 20 or 25 minutes. I just want to get the best out of these guys. Because I have known both sides of life in the NBA, up the mountain and down, with the Cavs but also the Wolves. But when you manage to find what we currently have, you have to bottle it and see how far it can take us. “
“We don’t follow fashion, we do things differently”
Well convinced that these Cavs have all the elements in place to go far, if not this year, in those which will follow, Kevin Love is inexhaustible when it comes to evoking the quality of his little youngsters who are rising, who go up. But it shows on the boards. Facing Brooklyn, on a quarterback pass of which he has the secret, Love sends Garland on the counter-attack and the latter, instead of placing the layup in person, prefers to drop the leather for Okoro in trailer, who crushes everything in the circle with a big right hand dunk! Decidedly, these Cavs live well together!
“JA is playing at an All-Star level this year. Darius has reached a new milestone too and he could very well be All Star too. These guys are really playing at a very high level. And then behind, we have the rookie of the year [en Evan Mobley]. We have Isaac Okoro too. collin [Sexton] and Ricky [Rubio] obviously had injuries but we had a lot of different guys who answered the call. We have three players over 2m13 with Lauri Markkanen under the panels. We don’t follow fashion, we do things differently. Our defensive schemes are different from anything in the League. Our bench was also very good. It’s refreshing to be part of this team and to see the guys working hard and seeing the fruits of their labor. “
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8xvV4lmqbU
| Kevin Love | Percentage | Bounces | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | GM | Minimum | Shots | 3 points | LF | Off | Def | Early | pd | party | Int | bp | CT | Points |
| 2008-09 | MIN | 81 | 25 | 45.9 | 10.5 | 78.9 | 3.4 | 5.7 | 9.1 | 1.0 | 2.5 | 0.4 | 1.5 | 0.6 | 11.1 |
| 2009-10 | MIN | 60 | 29 | 45.0 | 33.0 | 81.5 | 3.8 | 7.2 | 11.0 | 2.3 | 2.3 | 0.7 | 2.0 | 0.4 | 14.0 |
| 2010-11 | MIN | 73 | 36 | 47.0 | 41.7 | 85.0 | 4.5 | 10.7 | 15.2 | 2.5 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 2.1 | 0.4 | 20.2 |
| 2011-12 | MIN | 55 | 39 | 44.8 | 37.2 | 82.4 | 4.1 | 9.2 | 13.4 | 2.0 | 2.8 | 0.9 | 2.3 | 0.5 | 26.0 |
| 2012-13 | MIN | 18 | 34 | 35.2 | 21.7 | 70.4 | 3.6 | 10.4 | 14.0 | 2.3 | 1.9 | 0.7 | 2.2 | 0.5 | 18.3 |
| 2013-14 | MIN | 77 | 36 | 45.7 | 37.6 | 82.1 | 2.9 | 9.6 | 12.5 | 4.4 | 1.8 | 0.8 | 2.6 | 0.5 | 26.1 |
| 2014-15 | KEY | 75 | 34 | 43.4 | 36.7 | 80.4 | 1.9 | 7.9 | 9.8 | 2.2 | 1.9 | 0.7 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 16.4 |
| 2015-16 | KEY | 77 | 32 | 41.9 | 36.0 | 82.2 | 1.9 | 8.0 | 9.9 | 2.4 | 2.1 | 0.8 | 1.8 | 0.5 | 16.0 |
| 2016-17 | KEY | 60 | 31 | 42.7 | 37.3 | 87.1 | 2.5 | 8.6 | 11.1 | 1.9 | 2.1 | 0.9 | 2.0 | 0.4 | 19.0 |
| 2017-18 | KEY | 59 | 28 | 45.8 | 41.5 | 88.0 | 1.7 | 7.5 | 9.3 | 1.8 | 2.0 | 0.7 | 1.5 | 0.4 | 17.6 |
| 2018-19 | KEY | 22 | 27 | 38.5 | 36.1 | 90.4 | 1.5 | 9.4 | 10.9 | 2.2 | 2.5 | 0.3 | 1.9 | 0.2 | 17.0 |
| 2019-20 | KEY | 56 | 32 | 45.0 | 37.4 | 85.4 | 1.0 | 8.8 | 9.8 | 3.2 | 1.6 | 0.6 | 2.5 | 0.3 | 17.6 |
| 2020-21 | KEY | 25 | 25 | 40.9 | 36.5 | 82.4 | 0.7 | 6.8 | 7.4 | 2.5 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 1.5 | 0.1 | 12.2 |
| 2021-22 | KEY | 38 | 21 | 43.4 | 40.3 | 88.6 | 1.1 | 6.0 | 7.1 | 2.1 | 0.9 | 0.3 | 1.2 | 0.2 | 14.0 |
| Total | 776 | 31 | 44.1 | 37.2 | 83.0 | 2.6 | 8.2 | 10.8 | 2.4 | 2.0 | 0.7 | 1.9 | 0.4 | 17.8 | |
