The Chicago Bulls have jumped back into the Kevin Love trade rumors just as the Cleveland Cavaliers set themselves for the Timberwolves deal, as ESPN reports they are interested and names like Taj Gibson, Jimmy Butler, Tony Snell, Nikola Mirotic, Doug McDermott and Mike Dunleavy could be traded in the package.
Minnesota has been in deep talks with Cleveland about Love and they also have been working with the Golden State Warriors, but so far no deal has gone through. According to ESPN.com, the Bulls were considered a target early in the offseason for Love, but that fell off after the team chased Carmelo Anthony in free agency and signed Pau Gasol. Now Chicago is back in the mix and while they don't have Andrew Wiggins to deal, the team has plenty of assets that could interest the Timberwolves.
Minnesota is looking for NBA ready players if they can get them and they could be one reason why they look to Chicago over Cleveland, although the Cavaliers are reportedly confident that a deal will get done. The team wants Wiggins, but they could pick Chicago so that they are not in another long rebuild, as they have pro players that are very solid and with potential in Gibson, Butler and Mirotic.
Cleveland is already maneuvering to make the deal, as they pulled off a trade with Utah to get players with non-guaranteed contracts and now the Wolves can acquire those players and then clear them off the cap. Minnesota wants to trade Kevin Martin and JJ Barea in the deal along with Love and to absorb that money in a trade, Cleveland had to make other moves and this comes as they are signing Wiggins as well.
Reports say that signing Wiggins will not affect the deal between the Wolves and Cavs, even though signing the rookie means he cannot be traded for 30 days. The Cavaliers originally offered Dion Waiters, Anthony Bennett and a first round pick to Minnesota, but they demanded Wiggins. Cleveland originally did not want to trade Wiggins, but eventually they relented and this comes as the Golden State Warriors are not willing to trade Klay Thompson.
The Golden State Warriors don't want to split up Thompson and Stephen Curry, instead offering a package with David Lee and Harrison Barnes along with a first round pick. The Warriors do not want to get exposed in the backcourt on defense and that is one reason why they have not included Thompson. The team just hired Steve Kerr and they want to give him the best team possible.
The Cavaliers would be title contenders if they get Love and this comes after the team signed LeBron. Everyone likes Wiggins, but the team knows what Love can do and while it would be tough to give up Wiggins, LeBron is only this age for so long and while Wiggins could be good for years down the road, the team could win a championship now. The Bulls appear to be real players in this and they have the assets to move to get a deal done with the Wolves and it's very tempting.
