Is Kevin Love Still Available?

For the second straight offseason there were rumors about the Boston Celtics being a potential landing spot for the then free agent Kevin Love. Those rumours caught very little traction this offseason and after Kevin Love signed a 5 years $110 million contract it appears as though that dream has died.

Well, Love still might be on the move later into this season, its just going to have to be for a hefty price. There are reports that even though the Cleveland Cavaliers locked Love into a long term contract, he may still be on the trading block.

The Cavaliers will still have to figure out a way to have both Love and Tristan Thompson work together and if that fails the Cavaliers will be able to get a huge return for the power forward.

Dec 9, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Tristan Thompson (L) grabs a rebound in front of Toronto Raptors center Jonas Valanciunas (17) and forward Kevin Love (0) in the fourth quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

There have already been plenty of speculations about the Celtics working out some sort of trade with the unprecedented collection of guards they put together. The Celtics have a lot of young talent and they simply do not have enough roster space for all of them.

Even if the Cavaliers will need some time to figure out if they can work both Thompson and Love together (as the NESN report suggests) that could wind up benefitting the Celtics.

The Celtics will also need some time to figure out which guards are best fit for their roster. Right now the Celtics have Marcus Smart, Isaiah Thomas, Evan Turner, James Young, Avery Bradley, Chris Babb, Phil Pressey, R.J Hunter, Terry Rozier and Marcus Thornton who will all be competing for two starting positions.

It will be extremely tough for Babb and Pressey to secure a roster spot but the rest will all be in serious contention for a spot in the rotation. Even if they are all going to be able to compete and the likes of Young and Turner have position flexibility with their size the Celtics are much better off using these guards as assets in a trade.

Throw in all the draft picks that the Celtics collected form the Brooklyn Nets and the Celtics could present a serious trade offer for Love if he becomes available.

The additional benefit of waiting until the trade deadline or even at the end of next season to trade is the Celtics get to figure out which guards will be the best compliments to Smart and Thomas. No matter how the guard battle shapes up a good prospect is likely to be out of the rotation and giving them time to figure that out will ensure that the Celtics get the best possible guards on the court.

Feb 25, 2015; Boston, MA, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jonas Jerebko (8), guard Evan Turner (11), guard Isaiah Thomas (4), forward Jae Crowder (99) and guard Marcus Smart (36) celebrate against the New York Knicks during the second half at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports

Right now, there is too much uncertainty around the rookies for the Celtics to have any confidence in which guys will be with the team long term. Just as the Cavaliers will want to get a return if they lose Love, the Celtics will also want to get a return if they are going to have to sacrifice young and talented prospects.

This is incredibly early speculation as the very earliest a trade will go down is at the trade deadline in the upcoming season but if Thompson and Love do not improve their chemistry and the Cavaliers cannot find a way to get the most out of each of them, then they will be better off finding a suitable trade partner.

It appears as though the Celtics will not be getting their max contract free agent which means they will have no problem at all taking on Love’s huge contract, a contract that will look like a bargain after the salary cap increases.

The Celtics have the luxury of knowing that they can offer up plenty of young and talented guards without the rotation suffering and if they package that together with draft picks that may be the best return the Cavaliers will get from love.

If Love is put on the trading block his stock will be at an all time low. Love’s production plummeted in his first season with the Cavaliers and if he is put on the trading block chances are it will not be that improved and the Celtics may have an opportunity to get Love for much less than his actual worth to the team.

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