Getty Kevin Love celebrates with Kyrie Irving during Game Three of the 2017 NBA Eastern Conference Finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics at Quicken Loans Arena on May 21, 2017 in Cleveland, Ohio.
As Nets general manager Sean Marks prepares for what promises to be a busy, transaction-filled offseason, one of his team’s brightest stars is getting ready for a different type of challenge.
Kevin Durant is currently in Las Vegas as he trains with Team USA ahead of the Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Later this month, he’ll try to lead the star-ladden team to gold.
In the process, is Durant pulling double duty and working to recruit another perennial All-Star to Brooklyn? The Nets might have just dropped a hint about it.
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Could Kevin Love Be Brooklyn-Bound?
As rumors swirl about Kevin Love potentially being bought out by the Cleveland Cavaliers this offseason, the Nets have been smack dab in the middle of the conversation as a plausible landing spot.
Numerous reports have mentioned the Nets as a preferred destination for Love should he get his buyout. And according to NBA reporter Erik Slater, Durant and Love are rooming together during their time in Nevada. Slater cited a source, who he said also added that the Nets are at the top of Love’s list in the event he is bought out.
Source tells me Kevin Love and Kevin Durant will be rooming together during Olympic training camp in Las Vegas.
Also adds that the Nets are at the top of Love’s list in the event he is bought out.
The Nets, meanwhile, just broached the topic with a not-even-close-to-subtle post on their official Twitter account.
“Always more to learn,” the Nets captioned a photo of Durant working with Team USA coach Gregg Popovich and, wouldn’t you know it, Love.
Always more to learn.
Does the post actually mean anything as it relates to Brooklyn’s pursuit of the five-time All-Star? Almost certainly not. Still, if the Nets’ social team was aiming to drum up some extra buzz for an otherwise innocuous post, mission accomplished.
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Cavs Reporter Thinks Love Could Be on His Way out of Cleveland
Jason Lloyd, who covers the Cavs for The Athletic, headlined a story he wrote in late April with: “It might be time for the Cavs, Kevin Love to part ways.”
Lloyd detailed Love’s tenuous relationship with the Cavs in his story, and then got to spelling out where he thinks all of this is headed:
If this were an isolated incident, what happened Monday (when Love essentially gave up on a play during a game in April) might not have blown up like it has. It’s all of the other events preceding Monday between Love and the Cavs that have brought us here.
Ultimately, both sides might agree to a buyout. Love has about $60 million remaining on his contract over the next two years. Blake Griffin, another Jeff Schwartz client, gave back $13 million of the $75 million owed to him to get out of Detroit. If Love wants to give back $10 million or $15 million, the Cavs might accommodate him and send him on his way. They can stretch the money owed to him, and it certainly wouldn’t be the first time Dan Gilbert has paid people not to work for him.
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Did Nets Just Hint at Their Pursuit of Buyout Candidate?