Cleveland Cavaliers star Kevin Love isn't a lock to return to the team after the season. Basketball Insiders' Steve Kyler reported the word around the league is Love is in "wait and see" mode with regard to testing free agency in July.
I wrote in January it seemed like Love was giving it one more season in Cleveland before deciding whether to stay long-term, but according to two new reports he isn't even giving the Cavaliers that much time.
"Is Kevin happy - ehh, he could be happier. He's not overly thrilled will how he is playing and the role he has, but he does like winning and being on TV a lot. Kevin is an aloof personality, so he's not like LeBron where he is out there with what he is thinking," Kyler wrote Monday. "I talked to some people about his situation at All-Star and the view from them, and they are close to the situation, is that Kevin is playing everything in a wait and see kind of way. How do things evolve, how far do they go and can he win a championship? ...
"I don't think he is nearly as decided either way as people want to paint it. I do know he wants to play better for a lot of reasons. I do not think he has his bags packed, but I also don't think he's house shopping in Cleveland either."
While Kyler seemingly paints the odds of Love leaving after the season at 50-50, a report last week from ESPN's Chris Broussard put the odds even higher.
"Almost all of the executives I've talked to believe he's leaving Cleveland after this year," Broussard said Thursday on ESPN Radio's "Mike & Mike" program.
Love has admitted he's struggled in his new role on the court, which primarily seems to be a No. 3 option who spaces the floor. He's said all the right things publically about wanting to stay in Cleveland beyond this season, but the fact Cleveland is winning and these kinds of reports are still coming out suggests him staying with the Cavs this summer really isn't a sure thing.
