Washington Wizards Should Pursue Kevin Love In A Trade

The Washington Wizards need to add a star this summer and Kevin Love might be on the move. Here’s why they should pursue him via trade

The Washington Wizards, along with virtually every other team in the NBA, want to sign Kevin Durant this summer. Their chances of actually landing the hometown hero, though, are pretty slim.

Whether or not Durant comes to Washington, the Wizards still need to acquire another star and John Wall made that pretty clear in a recent interview.

Teams that fail to sign Durant will go after the other top free agents, including Al Horford, Hassan Whiteside, DeMar DeRozan, Nicolas Batum and Dwight Howard.

When teams realize they have no chance at signing Durant, they’ll pursue the aforementioned players with max-contracts in their hands. The Wizards could easily miss out on every single top free agent, which could force them to overpay for a player like Harrison Barnes or Chandler Parsons.

Instead of paying a non All-Star the max, Washington – and the rest of the league – should pursue stars via trade.

The likes of Carmelo Anthony, Jimmy Butler and DeMarcus Cousins have all been in the rumor mill for quite some time. Washington could make a call to their respective teams with hopes of landing a deal, but the most likely star to be moved plays for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Unless something shocking occurs, the Golden State Warriors will likely go on to repeat in the NBA Finals this year. The Cavaliers are coming off an impressive home win, but the Warriors have responded to the pressure in the past.

Cleveland beat the Warriors by 30 points in the absence of Kevin Love, who’s suffering from concussion-like symptoms.

In his two seasons with the Cavaliers, Love hasn’t necessarily fit in well with what the team is trying to do.

He’s coming from a situation with the Minnesota Timberwolves where he was the go-to scorer and played with one of the top distributing guards in the NBA in Ricky Rubio.

Love was asked to take a lesser role with the Cavaliers with LeBron James and Kyrie Irving dominating the ball.

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Although LeBron is one of the best passers to ever play the small-forward position, he’s not on the level of a Rubio, Chris Paul nor John Wall.

If the series goes as predicted, the Cavaliers will likely make some serious changes this summer.

LeBron is going to become an unrestricted free agent, but there’s a sense that he’s going to stick around.

The other two players are more likely to leave.

Cleveland needs to add more versatility to their roster and it’s become clear that they don’t have the firepower to compete against teams like the San Antonio Spurs, Oklahoma City Thunder and Warriors.

Even with a traditional stretch four in Love, the Cavaliers’ offense is still often reliant on isolation basketball. Kyrie Irving is not known for his passing nor court vision. James, who’s been more reluctant than ever to shoot the outside shot, also needs the ball in his hands to be effective.

As a result, Love is kind of forced to be an outsider.

He doesn’t get the ball in the positions where he thrived with the Minnesota Timberwolves. His touches in the post are out of rhythm and he’s used as a spot-up shooter. He’s never truly looked comfortable since he arrived to Cleveland a few years ago.

Love, who’s three years older than Irving, is the most likely trade candidate of the Cavaliers’ big three.

After averaging roughly 26 points and 13 rebounds per game during his last season with the Wolves, Love is putting up just over 16 points and under 10 rebounds in two years with the Cavaliers. He also went from attempting about 19 shots per game to less than 13.

Love’s value was incredibly high with the Wolves, as it should have been.

He was traded for two first overall picks in Anthony Bennett and Andrew Wiggins. Since his production has dropped significantly in Cleveland – Love shot a career-low 41.9 percent this season – the Cavaliers shouldn’t expect to get that sort of return in exchange for Love if they do end up moving him.

Cleveland needs to consider adding versatile talent that can play on both ends of the floor. Love has hurt the team defensively and Cleveland’s one dimensional offense hasn’t done him any favors either.

The Cavaliers are at their best when they play small or have LeBron at the four spot. Trying to fit Love into that system is like trying to fit a sofa through a doorway that’s clearly too narrow.

Cleveland could move Love to the bench permanently – a move neither party would probably endorse – or they could trade him for pieces that complement LeBron and Irving.

As Joshua Howe pointed out, the Cavaliers desperately need a long, 3-and-D wing player, which is something almost every championship caliber team has.

The Washington Wizards have two of those players – Otto Porter and Kelly Oubre.

Both teams could benefit from each others’ talent. Washington needs a star and someone who could take pressure off John Wall on the offensive end of the floor. The Cavaliers, as mentioned previously, need length and shooting.

Porter is coming off the most successful season of his career and the first one where he received actual playing time. The 23-year-old is due for a contract extension next season too.

Washington has a really solid young core with Wall, Bradley Beal, Porter and Oubre leading the way. It’s possible that all four players will be with the Wizards long-term, but I wouldn’t be surprised if one of the wing players is dealt.

For the purpose of speculation, let’s assume that Washington misses on all of the top free agents initially. If they opt to look for a trade, a combination of Porter and Marcin Gortat would be enticing for teams that are looking to get over the hump.

On paper, both the Washington Wizards and Cleveland Cavaliers would seem to get worse.

Cleveland would be missing their third star and would be replacing him with two players who will likely never put up the numbers Love did in the past.

Washington would lose a 23-year-old developing wing player who has all the tools to become an extremely valuable 3-and-D player, and Gortat, who’s been one of the most consistent big men in the entire league since he came to the nation’s capital in 2013.

On the flip side, the Wizards would provide a change of scenery for Love.

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He would become a go-to scorer inside and his ability to space the floor would make him an instant threat along side John Wall.

Love would get plenty of touches off pick-and-roll and pop plays, which is something the Cavaliers have cut back on since he arrived to Cleveland.

The Cavaliers would get added depth and the 3-and-D wing they need to reach the next level.

An Irving, J.R. Smith, Porter, LeBron and Tristan Thompson lineup would give them the versatility they need to compete against Western Conference contenders.

Adding Gortat to their bench would solidify their second unit and give them a big man who’s capable of scoring, which is something Thompson struggles with at times.

Washington would have to find a way to replace Gortat, but that could be done through free agency. They would still have enough cap room to sign Whiteside, Horford, Howard or Bismack Biyombo.

Theoretically, the Washington Wizards could have a starting lineup that features Wall, Beal, Oubre, Love and a franchise-altering center. Their second unit would be led by Markieff Morris and Tomas Satoransky, if the Czech guard decides to come to D.C.

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Wall is entering the prime of his career and landing Durant in free agency isn’t guaranteed. Some are lower on Love than others, but those people quickly forgot how great he was in Minnesota. He would be a perfect fit along side Washington’s back court. It’s a risk for both teams involved, but it might be one worth taking.