Cavs’ Altman: ‘Kevin Love had an outstanding run with the Cavaliers’

The Cleveland Cavaliers have officially reached a buyout agreement with forward Kevin Love, the team announced on Saturday.

According to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski, the Miami Heat are a frontrunner to sign Love, but he plans to talk to the Philadelphia 76ers before making a decision.

Love, the longest-tenured member of the Cavaliers, playing in his 9th season with the franchise, has been out of the rotation and has not played in the last 12 games.

The 34-year-old appeared in 41 games (three starts) this season, averaging 8.5 points and 6.8 rebounds.

Love had this to say on Twitter:

I’ll have more to say soon but want to get this off my chest.

To the people of Cleveland and all of Ohio. I fucking LOVE you…and always will. Thank you for everything.

More to come. #0️⃣

— Kevin Love (@kevinlove) February 18, 2023

During his time with the Cavs, Love appeared in 489 games (380 starts) since being traded to Cleveland on Aug. 23, 2014, marking the 12th-most games in team history. In his nine seasons in Cleveland, Love posted averages of 15.7 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 2.2 assists in 28.5 minutes and ranks 2nd in team history in three-pointers made (1,096 3FGM), 3rd in defensive rebounds (3,720 DREB), 6th in total rebounds (4,493 REB) and 9th in total points scored (7,663). 

Love was also a member of the Cavaliers’ 2016 NBA Championship team and appeared in 63 playoff games (62 starts), averaging 15.3 points, 9.7 rebounds, and shooting a .404 three-point percentage in 31.1 minutes during his postseason career. His 63 postseason appearances with Cleveland are the 6th-most playoff games in team history. 

“Kevin Love had an outstanding run with the Cavaliers, including memorable on-court moments, four NBA Finals appearances, and an NBA Championship in 2016,” said Altman via a statement from the team. “Kevin represented the organization and the city of Cleveland with the utmost charm and professionalism during his nine seasons in Northeast Ohio. He also embodied everything a franchise would want in a player, and the admiration and gratitude we have for him will ultimately land his jersey in the rafters of Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse. We thank Kevin for his impact and wish him nothing but the best, knowing that he has solidified his place in the hearts of Cavaliers fans and this organization forever.” 

Over his 15-year NBA career, Love has played in 853 games (662 starts) with Minnesota and Cleveland, owning career averages of 17.2 points, 10.5 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 30.4 minutes per contest while also shooting .372 from the three-point line. A five-time NBA All-Star (2011, 2012, 2014, 2017, 2018), Love was named an All-NBA Second Team selection in 2012 and 2014.

He is 1 of 4 players in the history of the NBA to record 14,000 points, 8,000 rebounds, 1,500 assists, and 1,500 three-pointers made (LeBron James, Dirk Nowitzki, and Jason Kidd). 

Love had a great run with the Cavs, but all good things must come to an end.