Kevin Love looks as if he is going to be calling Cleveland home for the 2014-2015 season. Love has spent his entire six-year career in Minnesota, longing for a playoff berth at the very minimum. Too bad for Minnesota and Love, the Timberwolves couldn’t clinch a spot in the postseason even once with Love on its roster. Fast forward to summer 2014. Love wants out and LeBron James heads back to Cleveland, thus creating a want for star players such as Love to join him. Love has been rumored to go be headed different teams such as the Lakers, Bulls and Warriors but it’s the Cavs of all teams that have a deal in place with the stubborn Wolves to acquire the all star.

Kevin Love seems headed to Cleveland, will he Kryie Irving and LeBron help Cleveland finally win a title?

In a deal that will send #1 overall picks Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett along with a first round pick, the Cavs somehow got the Wolves to agree. It’s not the Warriors proposition of David Lee, Harrison Barnes and Klay Thompson but it’s a close second right? The Wolves didn’t want to end up like many other teams and call Love on his bluff only to have him leave Minnesota without getting anything back for him. With Love presumably on his way to Cleveland to join LeBron James and fellow all star Kyrie Irving, the question now comes about, which big three featuring LeBron is better? LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh or LeBron James, Kevin Love, and Kyrie Irving?  I would also like to point out that although LeBron had much of the spotlight during his time in Miami and it was well deserved but Dwayne Wade was the most crucial player on those teams. The two seasons that Wade played up to his ability the result was a title, coincidence? I don’t think so.

The new big three in Cleveland is much more of a shooting bunch with Love and Kyrie but adding LeBron to that mix with his excellent passing skills should put fear into opposing defenses. Plus this new big three is much younger being that LeBron probably won’t have to worry about any teammates’ knees going out after every game. Many may look at the two big threes and break them down and compare stats and how they predict the new one will do but for me, the answer to the question shouldn’t even be a thought.

Kevin Love has been in the league six seasons; Kyrie Irving has been in for three for what do they have to show for those seasons? Neither one of them has even played in one single playoff game, not one. I understand that neither had much help on their respective rosters but the point remains the same, there is no individual winning whatsoever from either of them. It’s an unfair comparison, but Kobe Bryant carried a team with Kwame Brown and Smush Parker in the starting lineup to the playoffs and almost a playoff series win. Looking at the Miami big three, when LeBron joined Dwayne Wade had won a title with several playoff appearances and Bosh also had a few sightings in the postseason with the Raptors. Of course being fair to at least Kyrie, he has only been in the NBA for a few seasons but the Miami big three was light-years ahead of LeBron’s new one in Cleveland.

The Cavs are on the rise and could prove me wrong but for now at least, LeBrons’ old gig gave him more of a chance to win a title in the next season or two.

The promise of Andrew Wiggins needs to be weighed against the known star power of Kevin Love as the Cavs and Timberwolves remain in discussions. By TonyTheTiger – Own work, via Wikimedia Commons

Over the last few days, one of the biggest questions that has the sports world burning is whether or not the Cleveland Cavaliers should part with #1 overall pick Andrew Wiggins in order to acquire all star Kevin Love. LeBron James’s return to the Cavs has made the entire NBA a brand new league. Before LeBron’s return, Kevin Love wouldn’t even think about becoming a Cavalier– it would have been the same situation that he is currently in with the Timberwolves. The only difference is that he would be in the Eastern Conference instead of the West. Since LeBron has rejoined Cleveland, it has become a desirable landing spot for players like Kevin Love.

Teaming up LeBron James, Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving could cause the league to go into a frenzy. It could be an even bigger deal than when LeBron joined Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh in Miami, due to the age of the players and how long a still-young James-Love-Irving trio could dominate. If they can make the trade, the question remains for the Cavs — What is Andrew Wiggins’ upside and should they trade him? A related question, from a different perspective is whether Minnesota should send Love to Cleveland for Wiggins, and in doing so create yet another super team? Here is my breakdown of the trade for both teams:

Cleveland Cavaliers: LeBron is home and the Cavs should do whatever it takes it keep him in Cleveland for the long haul. If LeBron says he wants Kevin Love then, as the Cavs management, you should do whatever it takes to get him to Cleveland. Parting with Wiggins and mortgaging some of the future could be seen as risky but would be worth it.

Wiggins isn’t even 20 years old and has so much potential, but that’s all it is…potential. We don’t know how Wiggins and his game will translate to the NBA, at least not yet. Wiggins could become one of the next NBA stars and if the Cavs trade him, they are potentially losing a future superstar. Love, on the other hand, is a known commodity. The city of Cleveland has suffered enough and it’s not clear what the right answer is beyond doing what LeBron wants and trying to avoid the Cleveland curse.

Minnesota Timberwolves: Kevin Love is an absolute stud. He averaged 26.1 points and 12.5 rebounds per game last season while playing on a losing team. If I’m the Wolves, there is no way in hell that I trade Love for an unproven rookie, no matter what his potential is. If I’m the Wolves I wait and see how Wiggins plays to see whether he’s worth it.

Wiggins being an unknown commodity is what has allowed other teams like the Bulls and Warriors to get more heavily into the conversation recently.

My take: You obviously won’t be able to get the same value and talent for Kevin Love if you trade him, but the Wolves can try and get as much back as they want because they know that their star is highly coveted. Based on optimistic projections and upside Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett for Love might be a good deal, but how could it actually turn out for the Wolves?

If I’m the Wolves, I take a step back and wait until the trade deadline to trade Love in order to get as much back as possible from a truly desperate team. The deal that intrigued me the most was the offer from the Warriors where they would have sent David Lee, Harrison Barnes and possibly Klay Thompson for Love and Kevin Martin. If I am the Wolves, I pull the trigger on that deal as soon as it is presented. Sorry LeBron.

As far as the Cavs go, if I were running the team, I wouldn’t be inclined to trade Wiggins for Love — not yet at least. Andrew Wiggins is so raw but shows so much promise. Having a player like LeBron next to him in these critical developmental years is probably the best thing to happen to the rookie from Kansas. James is the perfect role model for Wiggins and the Cavs should realize that. Andrew Wiggins, Kyrie Irving and LeBron James could be an absolutely scary trio for teams to face off against, and the Cavaliers at least owe it to themselves to see how that would play out before shipping Wiggins off to Minnesota.

The question will be how patient everyone can be. Especially Cleveland’s star from Akron, who has an out clause in his contract at the end of the season.

Even before Dwight Howard joined the Lakers many fans and members of the media looked to the 2014 off-season as a chance for the purple and gold to make a splash and start focusing their personnel moves on their post-Kobe Bryant days. Going into the 2013-2014 season with absolutely no hope of a championship, the Lakers stuck to their “plan” by signing a large majority of their roster to 1-year contracts to preserve the cap space they would enjoy the following offseason. Once the 2014 offseason hits, the Lakers will only have three players on their salary cap giving them flexibility to do what they want. But the real question is, what should the Lakers do with all that cap space?

If the front office is patient and handles the 2014 off-season correctly, it may only be a few seasons until the Lakers return to the White House. By Lawrence Jackson [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

My plan would be to save the cap space, despite how Kobe Bryant might feel about it, and save it for the 2015 and 2016 off seasons in order to more-thoroughly return the team to its rightful place atop the NBA. First off, the Lakers will be getting a top pick in the 2014 NBA Draft, which is linked to being one of the deepest drafts in recent memory and might eventually be compared to the historic 2003 draft (we hope Jerry West was wrong). So they will more than likely get a young star in the making to put alongside Kobe for the 2014-2015 season. Once the following offseason starts, however, the fun begins. Such players as Kevin Love, LaMarcus Aldridge and Marc Gasol will be free agents come 2015 and many expect the Lakers to snag Love, who played at UCLA, from Minnesota.

Wait another offseason, which could mean post-Kobe, and the 2016 free agent class is even better. With such players scheduled to become free agents as Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving, Anthony Davis, Damian Lillard and others, the Lakers could put themselves in position to return to championship contention within a few seasons simply by being patient in free agency for a few years. The two names most heavily linked to the purple and gold are Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving, which matched together, could be a deadly combination for opponents.

As for the fans, we might need to bite the bullet on next season as well in order to potentially celebrate another title a few seasons later. Those of us in the seats as well as the Lakers front office should realize that. The one problem is that the pressure of an impending Kobe Bryant retirement may put the Lakers in an awkward situation and they may push the panic button and sign a player like Carmelo Anthony this offseason. Nothing against Carmelo — he is a great player — but the best thing for the Lakers future would be to wait for now and use the cap space in future off-seasons.

What if El Loco had made his tournament larger or had been reminded of some other great commercials.

With the tournament going on, I’m not going to play an “NIT” here, but I will talk about a few of the “bubble” commercials/music videos that didn’t make it. Bare with me here. Things might get a little ugly. Hope you get some laughs out of it. Be sure to cast your vote for your favorite in Loco’s tournament too!

SportsCenter Commercials

My earliest memories of SportsCenter commercials are from middle school and early high school. I loved sports and would have watched the show anyway, but in the mid-90’s, ESPN started to advertise their flagship show more and more. Along with “hip” broadcasters like Dan Patrick and Keith Olberman (later Kenny Mayne, Stuart Scott, etc…), SportsCenter was all I watched before school and before I went to bed. A bowl of cereal and SportsCenter was how I started and ended my day. Below are a few of my favorite SportsCenter commercials. I love them all, but here are a few.

In the League there’s something brewing, you can see it in Patrick Ewing.

When it’s an extra step he’s taking – it’s a rule he is breaking…

You have to pause it on the Scrabble board. The words are amazing. Shaq is top-5 greatest entertainers of all time.

Pot head. He’s not funny but I have to dig at the Giants where I can.

Blake Griffin. Love him. K-Love gets to show his skills too. It’s really fun to do this to people by the way. Shout out to Jeff Laing and Nate Brown.

Grant Hill used to be able to dunk so good. Also he’s a piano player… Apparently a good one.

This would be funnier if it was Will Ferrell and not really Robert Goulet.

Keyshawn and Kobe. Awesome.

And, finally, Manny being Manny.

Tracy Morgan commercials for Video Games

This guy reinvents funny. The “Every day I do” line is one that can be used in so many connotations. The Warren Sapp one is the best, but Tracy Morgan is a hurricane of hilarity. Love it.

Hahahaha EVERY DAY I DO.

Two freakazoids. Ben Wallace and Tracy Morgan have more in common than is probably healthy….

Manning Commercials

The Manning brothers are all-time greats, when it comes to commercials. Especially Payton. Have a look.

Take a hike!

Loving the ‘stache!

And the brothers acting like… brothers.

All of these videos are funny and should have been considered. Most of Loco’s are probably funnier, but some of these should have had a shot. Much like bubble teams who didn’t get into the tournament, these “players” deserved a shot. Hope you enjoyed looking at them as much as I liked finding them.

OM

In today’s cotton candy world, both hollywood and sports stars are interchangable. The incestuous relationship between the two has tainted the NBA’s mid-classic, one filled with amazing memories of the leagues true stars battling it out for supremacy and the right to call themselves not only stars but superstars.

Which according to Andy Stevensfrom fansmanship.com, is the reason the “boring” though best power forward in hoops Kevin Love, nearly missed out.  20 and 10 for Love is like tying his shoes. He’s the first player to go for 30 and 30 (that is not a typo) in 28 years. And yet had it not been for the blessing of Yao’s injury prone career; curse rather if you are talking to the Rockets front office, K-Love would of better known as a christian radio station.  The guy is so methodical in his approach toward the game that he rebounds without jumping. Why? He is smarter than any other forward in hoops, and knows that 80% of the time the ball will carom to the opposite side in which it was shot from. Not only has this approach made him the best rebounder in basketball (15.5 per), but wisely conserves his energy and his knees, which in the end increases his longevity.

“BUT HE IS NOT FLASHY OR PRETTY ENOUGH!” Pretty? Since when do NBA stars have to be pretty or hollywood made? And since when did Paris Hilton have a say in things anyways?

Unfortunately a player like Love is too Beethoven. His ability to out-think individuals is boring, like watching Bobby Fischer dominate a 70- something Russian man at a game of chess. Where are the Jay-Z’s? T.I’s? Lil Weezy’s? Why listen to the abrupt pause and finishes of a Beethoven, when we can stimulate our cultures sub-par brain with cheep beats and kindergarten hooks?

Which is exactly the reason our pop culture is to blame for everything; we are insightfully deaf and dumb. Like Dumbo we sail with our ears instead of slicing skies with intellectual jet-planes. We’re more intrigued when candy chewing L.O.blows a kiss to Khloe Kardashian than we are when Love records another twenty rebound night on an over-hyped big, i.e. Andrew Bynum.

“But Andrew, your dimples remind us of an innocent school boy.” Really pop world?

Love is the better version of our eras Kevin McHale, a guy who won three titles in the 80’s with the Celtics, on a team of forgettable- boring- athletes.  McHale and the Celtics were self-less back country farm boys who graced sports with less one dimensional athleticism, than they did a team oriented intellectualism.

Instead we get Lamar Odom because his swag aloofness is adorable. Or Yao, because he’s the face of an entire nation (which by the way is ridiculous, if this is the case, vote in Eduardo Najera.) Next thing you know, Lil Bow Wow, who currently plays ball at USC, will be the first college athlete voted into a professional mid-classic.

In the end, who gives? It is only the game of some-stars. Kobe? Of course. LeBron, Wade, Durant? Without a doubt deserve it. Let them steal the show, literally, percolate desire from fans with about as much intelligence as Sarah Palin’s economic plan. When the game ends, K- Love will go back to shutting up every critic on the planet. You can count on that.

–Luke Johnson

A shoe in for being chosen by the fans, his peers and coaches as an all-star, right?  Not quite.

Yao Ming was chosen as the starting Western Conference center by the fans, even though he hasn’t leaped for one jump-ball this season.  However, since Yao is injured, Love recieved the final all-star nod in his place.  If Yao weren’t injured, the league leader in rebounding and hustle would have been left off the all-star roster all-together.

This protocol of events is what disgusts me about the NBA all-star voting and selection process.  It has nothing to do with current palpable and measurable worth.  It only has to do with fan clubs, popularity and “bling.”

Why is this amazing talent not getting any respect league-wide? Is there even a racial undertone here? Because he is caucasian, isn’t “flashy” and doesn’t have his own ™ dance or strut, is he paying the price in the eyes of “the fans?”  If Love were an African-American, would we even be having this discussion?

I believe the answer is no.  He’d be one of the first selected.  I am not at all insensitive to the history of the plight of the African American in the United States, but it is evident that a certain amount of racism exists here.

The NBA is dominated by African Americans the same as Caucasians dominating American society is percieved.  Thus, the Caucasian is the same, if not worse off in the NBA than the African American is in today’s American society.

Anti-stereotype crusaders of racial equality need to realize in some instances it can undeniably be a two-way street.  Jackie Robinson it is not, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a particular amount of discrimination found when reading between the lines.

Bottom line:  “Black” or “White,” show Kevin some love already.