The Kevin Konundrum

The Kevin Love Summer Experience 

by Bobby Catz

As you may have heard recently,  Kevin Love, the star forward of the Minnesota Timberwolves has decided that he no longer wants to play in Minnesota (shocker) and will not resign when his contract expires next summer. This is the classic tale that all franchises inevitably go through, and that is, what to do when you have a star player who does not want to play for you?? Do you trade him? Try and recoup his value with some young players and draft picks? Does that ever work out though? I dare someone to name one trade where a team trading away a superstar actually won the deal. It has not really happened. More likely is they are going to get fleeced and be the laughingstock of the fans for years to come. Look at what happened to the Thunder with James Harden. They had a franchise that could potentially compete for championships for the next 10 years!! Instead they panic trade Harden for Jeremy Lamb and Steven Adams, and even though Adams looks like a legitimate backup NBA center, he is not James Harden. Or they could try the Lakers route of last off season when they decided to let D12 walk without anything in return. Now how bleak does the outlook for the Lakers look?? I even had one stupid NBA fan tell me that they will never be competitive again! Again!! Granted I completely disagree, but you can see how much losing a superstar hurts. Most famously look at the Cavs after Lebron left. Sure they have gotten 3 out of the last 4 top picks in the draft. But if you think that for one second that any Cleveland fan would not straight up trade every pick they have had in the top ten over the last twenty years for Lebron to come back, then you are a crazy person. So what do the Wolves do? It is an interesting question, Love has been unhappy for a few seasons, and the fact that he wants out officially now comes as no surprise. The following three scenarios are the best/worst/and most logical situations for the Wolves to handle the K-Love mess while still saving face, unless they go with the worst option of course. 

WORST

Trade him to HOU for Omer Asik, Parsons, and future picks.

This would be the absolute best case scenario for Houston, and a nightmare for every other team in the league including Minnesota. Sure Asik, and Parsons are young contributors who would probably go on to have solid careers. But neither of those guys is getting you a title. This would be an absolute nightmare of a trade for Kevin Love, and the only possibly way the Wolves could save face on this one is if one of the picks ended up being Lebron James some how. Plus, Asik is making like 15 million next year and will probably command at least 12-14 million when his new contract comes around, a number that any team should be hesitant to pay let alone the Wolves. Though selfishly, the thought of Kevin Love playing with the combo of D12 and Harden is mouth-watering, and even though they would not be able to stop anyone defensively, the firepower on this team would be unbelievable.

BEST

Trade him to the Cavs for the number one pick and maybe Waiters.

This would be the absolute best move the Wolves could make. Not only would they get back a young Waiters who has shown he can be a competent NBA guard when he does not have to share the court with Kyrie, but they also get one of the three top prospects in this draft!! Depending on which way they go, they could legitimately end up with a player who has the potential to not only match the production of Love, but possibly exceed it! Even if the person they choose ends up being one of the all-time biggest busts, it would still be a smart move to go out and give a franchise that has little chance of being competitive right now something for their fan base to be excited about! When was the last time they could say that? When KG won the MVP and they made it all the way to the second round?? Times are tough in Sota, but at least this deal brings hope.

LOGICAL

TRADE HIM TO THE SUNS FOR MULTIPLE PICKS!!!

This is not what is going to happen, or what would be the best choice for the league, but rather what should happen in order to minimize their risk and get enough return to quiet the doubters out there. The Suns have 6 first round picks in the next two drafts! 3 this year starting at 14 and two others in the twenties, followed by their own pick next year and two protected picks from the Lakers and Timberwolves! Not only would this give them plenty of ammunition to restock their roster over the next couple of years, but if they were able to do it without Love agreeing to an extension with the Suns first, they could absolutely fleece the Suns! Think about all you could do with three picks in this loaded draft, and then two or three more next season! But why would the Suns make this trade especially if they could not get him to agree to an extension first? Because the Suns are trying to make a push, and the only way you can win titles in the NBA is by taking big swings like this. Unless you have a legitimate NBA superstar you are not winning a title anytime soon, and don't even try to tell me about the teams that did not have one and still won, the only team that has ever done that is maybe the Pistons of the early 2000's, but they had four or five all-stars every year and a deep bench. This is absolutely a great way for PHX to step out and finally contend for a title, while also benefiting the Wolves and helping them get back on track going forward. Will it happen? No way, while I am typing this I am sure the Wolves are signing the paperwork on Love going to the Lakers for Jordan Hill and two second rounders because NBA GM's are stupid like that. But either way it will definitely be fun to watch.

BONUS PICK!!!

AFL

SA at PORTLAND (-4) 

Do yourself a favor and do not watch this game. These are two of the worst teams in the AFL, and its probably going to play out like an absolute suck fest. However, I have watched this Portland team play against better teams and at time actually look like they belong on the same field. That does not mean I think they are good, but definitely better than SA!