Quote:
Originally Posted by SNR
And he doesn't have to play 40 minutes per game under the ideas I've been throwing out there.
Look, we're not going to agree on this, but one thing I'm trying to make you aware of is the value that Kevin Love has to this Cleveland team. When you say he "doesn't play the post" that's extremely misleading. He DOES play the post. He's just often overpowered or caught out of position by teams with especially huge and talented players up front like Memphis. And in case you're worried about some of the teams in the East, remember that he has had a lot of really good games against Chicago recently going up against Noah and Gibson.
The defense thing is a fair criticism, but again, it's not like he refuses to play defense or is incapable of refining that part of his game. Remember, he's been playing for a Rick Adelman team the past 3 seasons. It's easy for anybody to look like a huge pussy on defense. If Kyrie and Waiters get excuses for playing under Mike Brown, then Love should be granted the same excuse when it comes to his defense. If Blatt is as RustShack says he is, Kevin Love's defense isn't going to be a strong point, but it's not going to be what prevents the Cavs from winning championships, either. Especially when you consider what Love gives you.
Question, chiefzilla: If instead of Kevin Love, the trade was for Dirk Nowitzki circa the year the Mavs won the championship, would you take that? Assume that this version of Nowitzki is the same age as Love.
Love isn't far from that. He's not the ball handler that Dirk is/was, but he doesn't need to be- he's got Lebron and Kyrie. He's not just any stretch 4. He's the best one in the game.
|
To answer your question, in general I'm not a big fan of building a big 3 where you have 3 max contracts. If Love agreed to sign for less to play with Cleveland, that would be a different story. Let's not forget that the Heat's big 3 took big paycuts to join forces. Kyrie and Lebron got max contract. Nothing indicates that Love would agree to anything less. But I'd be okay with Dirk because he plays underratedly good defense which again, you need someone who can take over while Lebron sits on the bench. And again, if I'm building a big 3, I want a rim protector. Maybe Lebron doesn't want a guy clogging the paint, but getting a guy like, for example, Hibbert on a trade... THAT feels like a complement to the Cavs skill sets, whereas Love feels more like acquiring an unbelievable asset than forcing everyone to make it work.
To me, it is a panic move to force the Cavs to win in 2-3 years disregarding that there is plenty of talent that can 1) prolong Lebron's career; 2) keep him winning in a longer window. Even with Love I think the Cavs are underdogs to win against the West. Maybe even against Chicago. And that's not what you want when your window is that tight.