The Cleveland Cavaliers are expecting to have Kevin Love back next season along with Tristan Thompson on a new contract, as he is a restricted free agent and the team wants to retain him for LeBron James and this comes as Matthew Dellavedova may also have a key role moving forward, as he shut down Stephen Curry following the Kyrie Irving injury in the finals.
The Cavaliers are in the finals, but they have concerns in the offseason, as Kevin Love has the ability to opt out of his deal, while Tristan Thompson is a restricted free agent. According to ESPN.com, Love was asked about coming back to the Cavs next season and he responded "yes sir" when asked about being back in Cleveland for Game 1 of the season in 2015-16. Love has the ability to opt out and June 30 is the big date to watch, as that is the deadline to do it.
The team is hoping that he opts in, as the Cavaliers gave up two first overall picks in Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett for him and the team did not even get to see Love in the finals. Love has been out with a shoulder issue and he is expected to be healthy for the start of next season. According to ESPN.com, Love was asked about returning to Cleveland and stated: "Yes. I want to win." Staying with James would help that and the Cavs are also poised to bring back Tristan Thompson.
Thompson is expected to return, as he is an RFA and that means the Cavs can match any offers he gets on the market this summer. Thompson has shown his value by stepping in for Love and he has had strong performance in the playoffs, including 15 rebounds in Game 1 against the Warriors. According to Chris Haynes on Twitter, Thompson could end up a "Cavalier for the rest of his life" depending on his next contract and he comes in with a $6,777,589 qualifying offer after he averaged eight points and eight rebounds in 82 games played this season.
Love has been out with an injury and earlier in the offseason Pro Basketball Talk reported that the Cavs were "concerned" that Love would opt out of his deal this summer. Interestingly enough, it looks like Love's injury has only helped with him coming back to the Cavs, as Love said his time on the sidelines has made him appreciate what Cleveland is trying to do right now. Some speculated that the injury would lead to Love opting out, but things appear to be turning a bit on that front.
The Cavaliers were able to tie up the finals series 1-1 after winning in Game 2 and one reason was the play of Dellavedova, as he was able to keep Stephen Curry from heating up. Dellavedova has stepped in with Kyrie Irving out for the rest of the finals with a broken kneecap and he helped keep the Warriors down in the Game 2 matchup, as Curry did not get much done with Dellavedova hounding him. Curry went 0-for-8 with Dellavedova on him and he also had four turnovers when the Australian guard was defending him.
