Kevin Love Turns Back The Clock In Cavs Short-Handed Win Over Pistons
Cleveland went into a Detroit pretty short-handed. Darius Garland did not play as he is still managing that eye injury he suffered in the season opener and Donovan Mitchell was out after he rolled his ankle on Wednesday night.
Considering that those two combined for 54 of the the Cavs' 114 points in their win against Boston, there was clearly a void that needed to be filled.
He enters Kevin Love.
Love had his hands all over this game against Detroit. He ended the night with 21 points and was 4-for-7 from behind the arc. But it wasn't shooting that K-Love really excelled at, that would be his ability to find the open man.
He ended the night with 10 assists giving him a point-assists double-double. This is the fourth time in Love's career that he's had one.
Love has always been an underrated passer. When LeBron James and Kyrie Irving were on the team they were obviously the primary ball handlers so Love didn't have a chance to show off his passing ability.
But back in the 2013-2014 season when Love was on Minnesota he averaged 4.4 assists a night. More recently, he averaged 3.2 assist a game in the 2019-2020 season.
The ability has always been there, but not the opportunity to show it.
After the game, Love said that, "These guys are keeping me young, keeping me fresh. I'm just finding my spots and where I can be effective." He went on to say that, "My value on this team is doing whatever it takes to win and also leadership."
It's one thing to say you want to be a leader or do whatever it takes when you're off the court, but Love is showing that he means it with what he does when he's on it. Friday night was a perfect example of that.
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