Could Los Angeles be Love’s next NBA Home
In 2015 Kevin Love will be a free agent and could help make a new team an instant title contender or give a contending team what it needs to push them over the top.
Regardless, if he is traded first or leaves as a free agent Love will have a large number of options to chose from. The star forward for the Northwest division Minnesota Timberwolves is putting up big numbers for a team that continues to spin its wheels.
Love this season is averaging 26.3 points, 12.5 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game for a team that is 6.5 games out of the eighth and final Western Conference playoff spot. The Timberwolves are all but eliminated from playoff contention. This is Love’s sixth season in the NBA and will be the sixth time he will miss the playoffs.
Love will be able to opt out of his contract in 2015 and become a free agent. There are a number of different teams that could use his services.
It seems like the Los Angeles Lakers would have the inside track to land Love. The scoring machine has ties to Los Angeles. He attended UCLA and his father Stan played at one time for the Lakers. Love was also born near Los Angeles in Santa Monica.
The Lakers need someone who will carry the torch for the team and be its cornerstone once Kobe Bryant ends his career. Another big reason Love might end up in Los Angeles is the team’s cap sheet is wide open for 2015.
If Kobe is still playing on 2015, the two would make a great tandem on offense. Add the two to a lottery pick this season and there is a making for a serious title contender.
Love just might end up being one of the Lakers even before he could become a free agent. The Lakers have the fifth worst record in the NBA, but still have a shot at landing the No. 1 pick due to the lottery system in the NBA.
Could the Lakers offer a deal for a No. 1 pick and Pau Gasol to land Love for next season? If Minnesota does not have confidence, it can re-sign Love then entertaining a trade would be an obvious choice for them, especially if it includes one of the top picks from such a strong 2014 draft selection.
Players like Andrew Wiggins, Dante Exum, Joel Embiid and Jabari Parker could all be in the draft and are all players that could potentially become franchise players.
The Lakers are down and out this season with their lack of talent and injuries that have decimated the roster. However, Love could be a huge addition to the roster and might even give Bryant the opportunity to make one last run at the NBA title before hanging up his sneakers.
Other teams considered to be on Love’s free agent radar include the New York Knicks, Chicago Bulls, Dallas Mavericks and Minnesota if he chooses to re-sign.
