Kevin Love Needs To Show His Worth In LeBron’s Absence
With LeBron James missing the next two weeks, this is the time that Kevin Love needs to show his worth to the Cleveland Cavaliers
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Kevin Love‘s willingness to play beside LeBron James in Cleveland may have tipped the scales when the latter was trying to decide whether or not to return back to his hometown this past summer.
Under the assumption that Love was going to be able to translate his early career success in Minnesota to Cleveland, of course. And even though Love has had his difficulties early on in Cleveland, only averaging 16.7 points and 10.1 rebounds per game, he’ll finally have chance to show his worth.
With LeBron James sidelined over the course of the next two weeks, the Cavs are going to need Love more than they’ve needed him through the first third of the season.
At the same time, he can also prove his naysayers wrong, as he returns to the Cavs lineup tonight after missing the team’s last game (back spasms). Something that Chris Bosh often was forced to do in Miami, as the third option.
This was the exact situation why Love was brought to Cleveland for. The whole point of a loaded team is that even when not at full strength, the team can still win.
In the face of trial, the Cavs should have enough to overcome any circumstance. Even if that means losing 25 points per game due to injury.
Love has a key opportunity at hand. He’s been questioned, second-guessed.
Is he a bad pairing next to LeBron?
Is he really as good as he was advertised in Minnesota?
Is he going to be on this team in one year?
He can begin to end those concerns in a stretch that begins tonight.
During the first handful of games this season, Love has had a usage percentage just north of 21. With LeBron James out, expect that number to only increase, perhaps closer than his 28.4 percent that he had a season ago in Minnesota.
Although, this is something that needs to happen and not something that will.
See, these next couple of weeks can go one of two ways for Love. It’s either going to be really good, or make matters worse.
If Love shies away from the offense, or doesn’t seem to place himself in situations where the offense can flow through him — along with Kyrie Irving — then the narratives return.
Kevin Love doesn’t fit in Cleveland.
Kevin Love can’t carry the load when he’s expected to win.
And it only goes on.
Although, if his production does increase — as it should — then he can begin to finally settle in to a comfort spot in Cleveland.
I hate to make the comparison, but it just makes so much sense. During his first year in Miami, there was a moment when Chris Bosh eventually clicked.
It happened after the 12th game of the season.
In the first 11 games, Bosh had only scored 20 points in a game once. During his next 11, he scored at least 20 points on eight occasions. While Kevin Love has done that 12 times out of the 22 Cavs’ games this season, which is actually better than Bosh, I’m still not sure Love is entirely comfortable with the team yet.
After that stretch for Bosh, he become one of the Big Three. He looked more comfortable going forward. Love just isn’t there yet.
But he’ll have that opportunity now. To claim his spot as a Cleveland Cavalier.
Even though the Cavs will have to fend without LeBron for the next two weeks, they have a more than capable team to survive that stretch. Perhaps it’s even time for the rest of the Cavs to re-find themselves.
Playing alongside LeBron can make one lazy, and forget the player they were before LeBron came along.
For the Cavs — specifically Kevin Love — losing LeBron for a while can be a blessing in disguise.
And the first thing that needs to happen in order to make that premise hold true is that Love needs to show his worth. He needs to prove that he’s on the same level as LeBron and Kyrie.
So far, Kevin Love hasn’t done that. But he’s going to have an opportunity to.