The Cavaliers have made clear in December 2019 that trade proposals on Kevin Love will be considered seriously. The team still holds to that statement but make no mistake; the All-Star power forward can only be had if the offer made will fit the requirements set by Cleveland.
Since the departure of LeBron James and Kyrie Irving, Love has emerged as the lone Cavs superstar, and to this day, he is living up to that status. His production remains impressive at an average of 17.6 points per game plus 9.8 rebounds and 3.2 assists.
The 31-year-old has also kept his decent accuracy from beyond the arc; he is able to sink more than three of 10 attempts from the area. In short, the Cavs are fully aware that Love remains a potent weapon, and there is no reason to send him away so easily.
According to Chris Fedor of Cleveland.com, NBA teams looking to trade for the NBA champion should be ready to pay up, and doing so, they will have to dig deep. The Cavaliers know the real value of Love and getting him out of Cleveland comes with a big price tag, per The Score.
And suitors must consider as well that a trade deal on the Cavs star will entail huge expenses in the next three years. Love's extension deal with Cleveland will seem his bank account ballooning to $90 million more, and that means when he joins up with a new team, the salary payout per year will be around $30 million.
Add to that giant investment will be the ticket to access Love's services. Fedor said it has to be a mix of current and future assets by the inquiring team.
As far as the Cavaliers are concerned, Love serves as the gateway to what the Cavs can secure now and what they can capitalize on in the next few years, according to Bleacher Report.
The veteran is valued by the Cavaliers as the one who "threads the needle between their present and future," that is why it only makes sense to demand big for a team wanting to acquire Love.
It has to be "a combination of picks and players," for an exchange deal to get started on Love, Fedor reported.
Truth be told, the demand by the Cavs has a rock-solid basis. Love is part of the squad that romped its way to four consecutive NBA finals appearances, and along the way, he played in five All-Star games.
It might be that Cleveland's good fortunes during the James era can be mostly attributed to LeBron, but it's hard to deny that Love figured prominently in the team's past successes. And he is proving that he can still replicate the feat in the years to come, as backed by his consistent performance even in the absence of James and Irving.
