Hannah Foslien/Getty Images
Age: 30
Remaining Contract: $24,119,025 in 2018-19; $28,900,000 in 2019-20; $31,300,000 in 2020-21; $31,300,000 in 2021-22; $28,900,000 in 2022-23
Total Payout: $144,519,025
Either Kevin Love is going to remain with the Cleveland Cavaliers and absorb a significant share of the payroll expenditures, or he’s going to be dealt to another organization for young players and additional draft picks.
But as Joe Vardon of The Athletic detailed while also revealing the power forward should return from his foot injury in mid-January, that could be unlikely:
“Love, who is 30 and has missed at least 20 games due to injury in the last three seasons, wants to play. Like the rest of the team’s veterans, he was upset by the turn in direction of the franchise and spent some extended time away for the first few weeks following surgery, but [he] wants to stay in Cleveland and has not asked for a trade. However, he sees a scenario in which he could be traded, if the Cavs wanted and were able to acquire a package of picks, younger players and tradeable contracts.
“Cavs officials, speaking on background, said there has been no discussion of trading Love, and they want him to be on the court with rookie Collin Sexton. Rival league executives point to Love’s contract—he’s making $24.2 million this season—and his injuries as roadblocks to him being moved.”
A healthy Love remains a talented figure in today’s NBA, capable of thriving on the glass and submitting an inside-outside blend of scoring contributions. But he’s also making enough money that Cleveland’s ceiling will be inherently limited while he remains on the roster, barring a massive breakout from one of the youngsters operating on a rookie-scale deal—Collin Sexton, for example.
Jordan Clarkson, Love, Larry Nance Jr., JR Smith and Tristan Thompson alone will make around $89.3 million in 2019-20. Landing an impact player (assuming one could even be lured to Northeast Ohio when the incumbents carry so little appeal) is a virtual impossibility, and that doesn’t change much when Love becomes one of the few massive deals on the books in later seasons.
Because his shooting should age well, Love’s contract may not become an albatross when peering at it through a narrow scope. But factor in the intended direction of the team, and Cleveland will have trouble making positive strides with anything other than rookie-scale talent.
from Viral News Show https://ift.tt/2A17nQx
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