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For Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love, things weren’t always cut-and-dry with LeBron James. The two certainly butted heads from time-to-time, but their relationship grew over time. After all, the photo of James embracing Love after the team’s championship victory in 2016 is one that won’t soon be forgotten by Cavaliers fans.
GettyLeBron James and Kevin Love embrace after Game 7 of NBA Finals
And during a recent interview with ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, Love spoke about what he’d tell an NBA free agent who asked him about playing with LeBron. His answer? To learn how to follow.
“You have to follow. You have to learn a lot about that,” he said.
“[Playing with LeBron] you’re not the top guy. I just tried to continue to be myself and not fake it. I said how I felt,” Love said. “Whether we disagreed or agreed, my voice was heard.”
Interestingly, Love also admitted that while there were “hard nights” that he recommends players reach out to James about teaming up. The All-Star Cavaliers forward didn’t hold back on the fact that he believes he was “stubborn” at times with his former teammate, as he told Windhorst and ESPN.
“You have to be resilient. I had a lot of hard nights. There were dark times,” Love said. “But I always believed keep fighting, I was stubborn about it. And LeBron makes sure you have a chance to win every year. He’s gotten a lot of guys rings. You’re going to win at the highest level. We won and we bonded and we’re going to continue this brotherhood.”
Kevin Love and LeBron James’ On-Court Success
There’s no question Love’s personal numbers took a hit after teaming up with James, but after averaging over 16 points per game and 9.7 rebounds in the first two seasons, he progressed in 2016-17. The former Minnesota Timberwolves forward seemingly got more comfortable with the future Hall-of-Famer. During his second-to-last season with LeBron, Love averaged 19 points and 11.1 rebounds per game.
Love’s shooting has reverted back to the form most saw with the Timberwolves as well, and he even became a better 3-point shooter. The 30-year-old shot 45.8 percent from the field while connecting on his second-highest percent of 3-point attempts in a season at 41.5 percent.
James and Love were each big parts of the Cavaliers winning at least 50 games every season since they teamed up in 2014-15. LeBron also made the All-Star game in every year while Love got the nod in 2017 and 2018.
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Cavaliers F Kevin Love Offers Advice to Future Teammates of LeBron James