The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Love’s strained season leads to team success
CLEVELAND — Kevin Love’s arms are lined with finger-nail scratches, discolored bruises and abrasions, hard-earned mementos from months battling under the basket against other NBA big men.
Some of the surface wounds are healing, some are fresh.
Other marks are hidden. On the eve of his fourth straight NBA Finals with Cleveland, and while recovering from a concussion suffered last week against Boston that could keep him out of Game 1, Love has persisted and prevailed during a season in which he revealed dealing with anxiety and panic attacks for much of his life.
It’s been an emotionally straining — but ultimately rewarding — journey for the 29-year-old All-Star, who laughed when told it feels like he’s been with the Cavaliers much longer than four seasons.
“I’ve been through enough for a guy who has been here for 12 years,” he told the AP following a recent practice. “It’s been well worth it.”
Love, though, has had to pay a price for his newfound peace.
Almost since the moment he arrived in a trade from Minnesota in 2014 to form Cleveland’s “Big 3” alongside stars LeBron James and Kyrie Irving, Love has been targeted — a convenient punching bag.
Despite playing at a consistently high level, he’s been called soft, overrated, injury-prone and worse. Trade rumors have swirled around Love almost without pause.
The assaults on Love have been relentless and brutal. While he never displayed his emotions publicly, he was stung by the criticism, which drove him into a shell and made him guarded.
Last week, he was knocked out of Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals following a first-quarter collision with Celtics rookie Jayson Tatum. Love was placed in the NBA’s concussion protocol, and his replacement, Jeff Green, came up big and helped the Cavs win Game 7 in Boston.
Love remained in protocol on Wednesday and his status for the series opener is in doubt.
As his teammates were handed 2018 Finals T-shirts and caps on the floor afterward, Love was nowhere in sight after watching the game from a back room at TD Garden. It was another twist in this strained season for Love, who has learned to take everything in stride.
The next stop on his odyssey is the Finals, and a chance to finish on a high note.
“For me, the glass has always been half full whether I’ll play here four years or 14 years, I will have looked back and said it was a great time,” Love said. “This has all been worth it. We got to hang a banner and hopefully there will be more to come.”