Kevin Love Rumors: What Minnesota Is Thinking!
By Ronald Agers
Dec 26, 2012; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Houston Rockets head coach Kevin McHale (left) talks with Minnesota Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor before the game at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Greg Smith-USA TODAY Sports
I want everyone to take a long look at this picture. On the left is Kevin McHale. He used to run the Minnesota Timberwolves. The guy on the right is Glen Taylor, the owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Glen Taylor fired McHale for putting the Timberwolves is such an abyss that they are still in to this day. Why? My guess is because of mishandling of the Joe Smith contract shenanigans that cost the Wolves draft picks. Or it could be because of that boneheaded Kevin Garnett trade. Check out the dude in the black shirt behind them. I know what he’s thinking…
“Boy rich people sure are forgiving! If I was old boy, I would get a ladder and get to slapping! ”
Welcome back Pippen Peoples to another episode of Kevin Love Rumors! I’m your host Ronald Agers, Editor of Pippen Ain’t Easy, here to tell you all of the up to the minute rumors linked to Kevin Love.
The last episode of Kevin Love Rumors featured the rumor that Kevin Love relayed his desire to be traded to Cleveland through his agent. The word going around the campfire was the rumored formality of the trade request. Like Kevin Love making it clear that he was not going to sign an extension didn’t clear that up.
Also last episode covered the New York Knicks making a laughable offer for Kevin Love last week. Like Amar’e Stoudemire and his chronic knees don’t have plans to go overseas next season. Who is he kidding? When the Philadelphia 76ers, who is in full tank mode don’t want your expiring contract. That’s a problem. Maybe Stoudemire will get it when all of the other NBA teams turn him down or give him a skid row veteran’s minimum contract that will probably be non guaranteed.
This episode is about the other side of the trade spectrum, the Minnesota Timberwolves. Sure it’s easy to talk about Kevin Love leaving town and where he will end up. But let’s take a look at what Minnesota is facing and really how unfortunate a situation they are in…like again.
Remember the Kevin Garnett trade back in 2007? Kevin Garnett was in a slightly better situation than Kevin Love is at this point. You see Garnett actually made the playoffs during his 12 year tenure with the Timberwolves. Outside of the one year Garnett teamed with Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell when they had some success in the playoffs, the Minnesota Timberwolves were consistently one and done in the playoffs. It’s amazing how small a world the NBA is. The six degrees of separation is amazing don’t you think?
By 2007 though, Minnesota had missed the playoffs the last three seasons. Even then Garnett had stayed loyal to “Sota”. Would you believe that Garnett would have stayed to this day in Minnesota if it was up to him? Would you believe that he didn’t want to go to Boston in the first place? He was actually hoping to go to a contender in a warm place. Like Phoenix. Phoenix dropped out because of financial reasons and an unwillingness to give up Amar’e Stoudemire. OOPS!
But thanks to Garnett easing up on his demands not to go to Boston, a draft night trade for Ray Allen and Kevin McHale’s fondness for Al Jefferson. The deal went through.
We all know what happened then. Basketball changed to the “Big Three” era that is still going on to this day. Hey, you may say San Antonio is the antidote to this but look at what Cleveland is still trying to do. Set up a “Big Three” with Kevin Love in the fold with LeBron James and Kyrie Irving.
The Celtics went on to win the NBA title that next year and Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor has been left holding the bag without a playoff invite since.
Glen Taylor is not going to be fleeced again. He must have felt like Boo Boo the fool after getting Al Jefferson, Gerald Green, Sebastian Telfair, Ryan Gomes and Theo Ratliff’s expiring contract. Couple that with a two first round draft picks. The Timberwolves were screwed.
That is why Flip Saunders and Glen Taylor is not going to part with Kevin Love without somebody, whether it be the Cleveland Cavaliers, Chicago Bulls, Golden State whomever backing up the NBA’s version of Macy’s during the Christmas holiday with a black credit card in hand.
The problem for Chicago is that Cleveland is perfectly willing to hand the Minnesota Timberwolves the credit card and shop.
Look, Andrew Wiggins the No.1 overall pick is gone. Let it go. It just makes sense. Remember the Timberwolves has to justify this deal to their fans too. All six of them.
If the Timberwolves get Andrew Wiggins along with last year’s No.1 overall pick Anthony Bennett and a first round pick, this can keep the picket lines away from the arena. In my opinion I think the Timberwolves will get more. If they can get a third team in the mix, maybe Dion Waiters can get involved. Remember Waiters and Kyrie Irving do not play well together.
The Timberwolves brass knows that Kevin Love is history, checked out, disenchanted, any way you want to describe an unhappy employee. Glen Taylor does not want him to leave and neither does Flip Saunders. However they are resigned to the fact that they need to be proactive and get as many assets as possible so they don’t find themselves in the same position as they were back in 2007.
Don’t let the 30 day waiting period for Andrew Wiggins fool anybody. If any other team tries to make a bid for Kevin Love trust me, Minnesota will use it to drive the price up on Cleveland. Minnesota wants Wiggins because he is the only player that the Timberwolves can sell season tickets with. Cleveland knows this so in my opinion, Cleveland is in the catbird seat.
Tune in next time for the next episode of Kevin Love Rumors!