Kevin Love ended his first season with the Cleveland Cavaliers on a very sour note as he dislocated his shoulder in their first round series against the Boston Celtics and was forced to miss the rest of the playoffs. Love had surgery at the end of April and his status for Cavaliers training camp was up in the air but it appears that he might be ready for camp as he is reportedly making excellent progress, according to Terry Pluto of Cleveland.com.
Love's surgery was on April 28th and at the time he was given a timetable of four to six months to be able to return. It has now been close to five months since the surgery and Love seems to be on the right track as he has been working out at the Cavaliers practice facility. Love is reportedly in great shape and is working on core training so that he can be more physical in the low post. Last season Love uncharacteristically struggled to finish in the low post so that is one of his main focuses this offseason.
Even though Love is progressing well from his surgery the Cavaliers still expect to take it slow with him early on. Love will probably be in the starting lineup on opening night but don't expect him to play 34 minutes per game like he did a year ago. The Cavaliers have said they want to limit Love's minutes early on in the season to ensure he is healthy for the stretch run. The Cavaliers should be just fine despite Love's reduced minutes as they will have Tristan Thompson coming off the bench.
The idea of reducing Love's minutes is right in line with the Cavaliers being cautious with Kyrie Irving's return from a fractured kneecap. It was reported that Irving might sit out until January because the Cavaliers know they will make the playoffs without full contributions from Love and Irving but they also know that they need both guys at full strength to bring a title to Cleveland. Love's rehab progression is a great early sign for the Cavaliers as they head into a season where they are expected to win a championship.
