Kevin Love will still become a free agent in 2015. The forward's contract expires in the upcoming offseason and he will be ruled a free agent. The Cleveland Cavaliers could not doing anything about that when they made a deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves to acquire the forward in the offseason. This has led many to believe that Love will still follow through with his original plan of becoming a free agent and potentially signing with the Los Angeles Lakers. Love is denying the idea.
Earlier in the week, Sam Smith of Bulls.com reported that there was growing belief Love was still planning on opting out of his contract in order to become a free agent and potentially heading to the Lakers in order to team up with Kobe Bryant and return to his West Coast roots. The idea made sense in that Love has admitted to being a Lakers fan and will have the opportunity to go there if he wanted. However, the Cavaliers gave up a lot of talent in order to acquire the forward, likely getting the guarantee that he plans on remaining there for the long-term. Love denies the plan to opt out in the summer.
"Whatever we were doing with our hands was about as true as me going to the Lakers," Love said (via Cleveland.com) in reference to a handshake with Kyrie Irving. "Going to the Lakers, I don't know where someone got that."
As of now Love appears all-in with LeBron James and company, but fans cannot help but be nervous since the forward does have an expiring contract to his name and could pull a 180 very quickly. The Cavaliers gave up two former No. 1 overall draft picks in Andrew Wiggins and Anthony Bennett to acquire Love in a trade. A number of NBA sources reported the team had an agreement with Love that he would re-sign when he becomes a free agent and stay for the long-term. The Cavaliers are preparing to offer a max contract to the forward, but per NBA rules, nothing could be signed until Love's contract would allow it.
The idea that Love plans on leaving will stay on the minds of all the Cleveland fans, especially after the departure of James four years ago. For now, Love sounds committed for the long haul, but ultimately nothing should be ruled out.
