The Miami Heat are in a place right now that is pretty weird when you think about it. While they don’t have a ton of cap space to work with and hardly any resources or assets, no draft picks and a Tyler Herro to potentially move, they aren’t all that bad off.
With a creative set of people doing that work for them, Pat Riley, Andy Elisburg, and the lot, the Miami Heat have routinely been known to pull off the impossible out of thin air, it seems. They might not even have to do that with this next one though.
The topic at hand today is a guy that hasn’t really been right over the past couple of seasons. Held to just 222 of 383 possible games over the past five seasons, when you incorporate the regular 82 from three of those seasons, the 65 from the Bubble Season, and the 72 game schedule from this past season, Kevin Love has only played in practically only about half the games.
Whether that be for injury, maintenance, or other nefarious reasons, organizationally, those are the facts. You then also have a piece of news from Cleveland.com that makes things that much more interesting.
The Miami Heat are on the hunt for talent and the Cleveland Cavaliers might just be looking to relieve themselves of some, namely, Kevin Love.
The Miami Heat might just have a chance to land Love. Well, there is, at least, a chance he might come available.
Based on the aforementioned Cleveland.com piece from Chris Fedor, Love’s role won’t be big with Cleveland moving forward, either way. Here is a specific quote as to why that might be the case that paints a bit of a clearer picture on the topic.
"Sources say the Cavs believe Mobley can thrive at 4 or 5. That versatility would give head coach J.B. Bickerstaff some intriguing lineup combinations. When Mobley’s not playing alongside Allen, the youngster could assume backup center minutes, especially if the organization can’t work something out with Isaiah Hartenstein, who is expected to decline his player option."
With the running thought being that potential top pick, Evan Mobley, would fit well alongside Jarrett Allen, whom the Cavs traded for this past season in the midst of the James Harden to the Brooklyn Nets deal but now need to get locked into a long term deal. With the thought that they will do all they can to do that, where does Love really fit?
Does he fit at all? Well, based on his moves, he might not think that the situation is a fit for him.
There is good reason to believe that. Here’s why.
The Miami Heat are probably monitoring several situations right now when it comes to potential additions to their roster. Kevin Love should be one of them.
While every athlete has an ego of some sort, even the most humble of them, that stands double for those that are so talented, lucky, and fortunate enough to become professionals. With that, it would manifest itself in this scenario with Kevin Love feeling as though he still has something to offer a team, in a meaningful role, with meaningful minutes, and in a meaningful situation.
He is practically screaming “come and get me”. When you look at the Team USA Olympic Basketball Roster for the Tokyo Games, Kevin Love fits but based on things such as the amount of games he’s played in over the past few seasons, he also sticks out a bit.
Other than the fact that there are few honors higher than representing your country in the Olympics, which is huge, there is no other reason for him to be playing other than to show that he still has it for any team that might be interesting in knowing the answer to that very question. It’s an opportunity to prove himself again.
The Miami Heat should be one of those teams looking. In fact, with Coach Erik Spoelstra in Las Vegas, at least, among the actual Olympic Team to coach the USA Select team that will help them prepare, he’ll get a real close look at what Kevin Love still has left to offer. That isn’t the only Heat-related nugget there though, there’s more.
The Miami Heat won’t have a more accessible opportunity at an impact guy this offseason than the one that Kevin Love & Cleveland, may, afford them.
The Miami Heat won’t just be sending Coach Spo to help whip the guys into shape as the coach for the opposite team during training camp scrimmages, they’ll be sending support for the actual team that’ll be going to Tokyo. Miami Heat number two and star big man, Bam Adebayo, is also apart of the team.
In relation to Kevin Love, that probably means a lot of opportunity and instances where they will be on the floor together. This is the part of the program where Pat Riley, Andy Elisburg, and Erik Spoelstra give each other sly grins.
Not only will they get to see how the combination works for themselves, but the actual subjects of the combination will have a chance to experience it. That can only be a good thing if the Miami Heat were looking at such a situation for the regular NBA season.
At the end of the day, be real about the situation. With everything that has been laid out here, Kevin Love’s timeline (to maximize a buzz word in Miami Heat Land right now), and the Miami Heat’s ability to get things done, it shouldn’t take an awful lot to pry him away from Cleveland if they want to.
There is one thing though, he makes over $60 million across the next two seasons. Yuck, that’s a tough pill to swallow and there isn’t a ton of room to believe is there is anything that can or will be willing to be done about those numbers.
There could be some magic in the pairing of him and the Miami Heat, but the numbers aren’t anything pretty, desirable, or perhaps even, tolerable.
Hopefully, some Miami Heat magic can be done there too, but as far as basketball stands, it seems like a legit fit based on Kevin Love’s skillset, when right. Keep your eyes peeled as the Olympic Games and preparations for them start to ramp up.
Also, keep a slight eye towards the Cleveland Cavaliers, because there is a Kevin Love storm brewing. That’s fine though, because South Florida and the Miami Heat, might just be built for that.