Ever since Kevin Love came to Cleveland, he’s had his share of peaks and valleys.
There are so many individual points we could go back to throughout his two seasons as a Cavalier, but first let’s just look at this insane roller coaster ride he has been on in the NBA Finals, just over the last two weeks.
Ten days ago, Love started at power forward, posted a double-double with 17 points and 13 rebounds in Game 1 of the NBA Finals. It was by no means a great game, but he was one of the bright spots in a 15-point loss.
In Game 2, Harrison Barnes delivered an elbow to Love’s head, forcing the power forward to exit the game early in the third quarter. Love was not playing great prior to the elbow anyway, the team lost by 33, and Draymond Green, who matched up on Love, scored 28 points in the game. 18 of those points came in the first half, when Love was on the court.
In game 3, Love could not play due to the NBA’s concussion protocol. The Cavs played their best game of the series, winning by 30, and some of that can be attributed to the addition of Richard Jefferson to the starting lineup, which moved LeBron James to power forward. Green scored just six points in the game.
If nothing else, it’s fair to say Love is a bad matchup against Green. But when the Cavs were down 2-1, it already raised speculation about the future of Love in Cleveland. For a multitude of reasons, the Cavs seem to be unable to beat Golden State when Love is on the court, and Green is a big reason why.
I’ll admit that I agree there is uncertainty about Love’s future and would not be surprised if he is traded this summer. ESPN’s Brian Windhorst recently stated on his “Hey, Windy” radio talk show on ESPN Cleveland that “four or five teams would make bids” for Love if he became available this summer.
Love returned in Game 4 and came off the bench for the first time of his career in six years. Love had a productive first half, scoring seven points, but the Cavs reverted to playing iso-ball after halftime, as LeBron and Kyrie Irving chucked up 33 of the team’s 38 shots in the second half.
Some of that has to be credited to Golden State’s defense baiting the Cavs into playing that style. Some of that has to be blamed on LeBron and Irving for falling into the trap. Some of it has to go around to the fact that Green contains Love as well as anybody in the league. The decision to start Jefferson, even when Love was healthy, seemed to work because Green was held to only nine points in the game, primarily being defended by LeBron.
But at some point, a guy who is a supposed third star, All-Star, whatever words one wishes to use to describe him, has to step up in big games.
Love could not ask for a better scenario heading into Game 5 in light of Green’s suspension. This news helps Love more than anybody.
The narrative could change by the end of that game from “Love being a trade candidate” to “Love is the hero in Game 5 on the road.”
That tells you how crazy the NBA Playoffs and Finals in particular can be.
Before the series started, the general theme was that Green would give Love nightmares. Now Love has to capitalize on this dream scenario, take advantage, and step up.
Forgetting about looking ahead past Game 5, if Love comes up big in a must-win game on the road, there won’t be as many questions about his value.
The Warriors don’t have players who match up great with Love other than Green.
They could put Barnes or Andre Iguodala on him, but Iguodala will primarily be focusing on LeBron. They could try Marreese Speights, but he’s not known for his defense. Barnes or Speights cannot be expected to do as good a job defensively on Love as Green or Iguodala would.
It won’t be a surprise if the Cavs feed Love early and often in Game 5 on Monday night.
Let’s say for argument’s sake, he plays a big role in winning this game and forcing a Game 6 in Cleveland.
Love is known to be somewhat of a streaky shooter. Perhaps seeing the ball go in with regularity in Game 5 can boost his confidence and get him going on a hot-streak heading into a big game at home.
The home crowd on his side and the boost in confidence could lead to Love playing an even bigger role in helping the team force a Game 7.
These are hypothetical scenarios, but these are all possible outcomes that could greatly improve Love’s chances of staying in Cleveland and not having to worry about the offseason rumors.
If we go back to last April, when Love had his postseason ended by Kelly Olynyk, that was one of the lowest points of the roller coaster ride. The Cavs played well without him, getting to Game 6 of the NBA Finals.
This season, he came back healthy and was a dominant player for two months, while Irving recovered from his knee-injury.
In November and December, Love looked like his old self, posting up 20-10 nights on a regular basis.
When Irving returned, it didn’t look like Love fit in quite as well, and his numbers reflected that. Not just his scoring numbers, but his efficiency and shooting percentage.
There were rumors of Love being a trade candidate to bring Carmelo Anthony or Ryan Anderson to Cleveland.
The Cavs stayed the course with the power forward and he shined as bright as ever in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
In the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals against Detroit, Love was a big reason why the Cavs were able to keep Andre Drummond from impacting the game with his dominant rebounding, because Love spread the floor and forced Drummond away from the rim.
Love averaged 19 points and 12 rebounds in the four games against the Pistons, scoring 28 in Game 1 and 20 in Game 4.
In the conference semifinals against the Hawks, Love continued to impress, averaging 19 points and 13 rebounds per game in the four games of the series. Love played even better in the two road games in Atlanta, scoring 21 in Game 3, and knocking down eight three-pointers in a 27-point performance in Game 4. It’s fair to say Love made the biggest impact in Game 4 on Mother’s Day.
When the Eastern Conference Finals against the Toronto Raptors rolled around, things got a bit tougher. Love’s eight-game double-double streak came to an end in Game 1 of the conference finals, but the Cavs dominated the first two games, even though Love’s scoring and rebounding numbers were slightly down.
Games 3 and 4 in Toronto were where the roller coaster ride went back down. Love shot 5-of-23, scoring just 13 points and grabbing 11 total rebounds in the two games. That may have been his lowest point as a Cavalier because it was not due to injury, he just flat out played poorly.
Love came right back in Game 5, scoring 25 points, calming down the doubters. He played well in Game 6, as well, posting 20 points to go with 12 rebounds, making it his only double-double of the six-game series.
That roller coaster ride is how we got to this point.
Now Love is going from starting the first two games of the NBA Finals and dealing with adversity in the process, to missing Game 3 due to injury, to coming off the bench in Game 4, and now in Game 5 will likely be right back in the starting lineup.
This is Love’s chance to deliver on the biggest stage of his life.
He didn’t play in the Finals in 2015. His team needs him now to show why he was traded for a number one overall pick and why he was given a max contract.
As with any other basketball game, it comes down to how the team plays as a whole, but this game seems to be a great opportunity for Love to take advantage of mismatches, answer critics, and help his brothers the same way they told him they had his back in Game 3.
If the Cavs lose the series four games to one, we will be hearing Love’s name in rumors for weeks, if not months. But this is his chance. Let’s see which way the roller coaster ride goes in Game 5.
Here’s the theme music for all day Monday, leading up to tip-off.
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