Kevin Love held up his Cleveland Cavaliers jersey in front the media making his move from the Minnesota Timberwolves official. The deal had been in the works for months and finally Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett were sent to Minnesota in exchange for the forward who joins LeBron James and Kyrie Irving as Ohio's very own Big 3. Things are looking up for 2014, but what about 2015 when Love and James both have the options to become free agents once again?
Per the Collective Bargaining Agreement, Love could not agree to a contract extension right now. He has a player option for the 2015-16 season and could easily opt out and become a free agent. That would his original plan with the Minnesota Timberwolves. However, when the Cavaliers made the move for a trade, they were not about to give up the past two No. 1 overall draft picks if they were not positive Love would stick around for the long-term. It was reported he had agreed to a max contract until Steve Kyler of BasketballInsiders.com made quick reference to the CBA saying that is not true.
During Love's press conference in Cleveland, the forward stressed that he was in fact committed to the Cavaliers for the long-term. Sam Amico of Fox Sports Ohio reports Love said, "I'm committed to this team, and committed long-term." That must be music to ears to Cavaliers' fans everywhere. It was widely speculated that Love would opt out of his contract the same time James could opt out of his. They would both have the opportunity of earning the most money possible.
James has already said he is not leaving Cleveland. Despite signing a two-year contract with the second being a player option, the forward has no plans on leaving the Cavaliers a second time. One can assume that James gave his word on a long-term commitment making it easy for Love to do the same.
Love told the media that he has already been in contact with James about mentally preparing to be in the postseason. During his tenure with the Timberwolves, Love never made it to the playoffs. Now the Cavaliers are considered a lock to be in the Eastern Conference finals. Love was just one of many offseason moves for Cleveland. They re-signed Irving, got James back and then added James Jones, Mike Miller and Shawn Marion to the mix giving the Cavaliers the perfect mix of youth and veteran leadership. Love puts it best, "It's pretty surreal."
