New Details on Utah Jazz, Kevin Love Buyout Emerge

Since the Utah Jazz acquired Kevin Love in their three-team trade earlier this summer from the Miami Heat, consistent buzz has revolved around not if, but when the two sides will find their way to a buyout agreement leading up to next season.

However, now with just over a month to go until next season tips off, it seems like there's still be little to no movement on that buyout coming to form.

According to NBA insider Marc Stein on The Stein Line, the Jazz and Love have yet to move into any serious buyout discussions.

“The Jazz and Kevin Love, I’m told, have not yet moved into serious buyout discussions despite reports to the contrary,” Stein wrote. “It is widely known in league circles that Love is determined to play for a playoff contender at this point in his career, but it is also customary for a buyout process to progress to an advanced stage once a post-buyout landing spot is assured."

Despite league-wide speculation centering on Love and the Jazz parting ways before the 2025-26 season gets going, as of today, the veteran big man remains in Utah, and still seems to reside in the early stages of a buyout process altogether.

Sam Amico of Hoops Wire reported last week that sources indicated a buyout agreement was expected between the Jazz and Love within the next two weeks. But per Stein's new intel, without any suitor lined up as a landing spot, that move has yet to gain a ton of traction just yet.

Dec 29, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets forward Jeff Green (32) talks with Miami Heat forward Kevin Love (42) prior to the third quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images | Erik Williams-Imagn Images

That doesn't mean the two sides won't agree to a buyout before the season starts, though. As is, the Jazz have 16 traditional contracts on their roster before the season, leaving them one player over the NBA roster limit.

Love remains the simplest and likely candidate signed to a traditional contract to be the odd-man out, slimming Utah to 15 names on the roster, along with their three two-way players. Of course, for that to happen, the buyout between Love and the Jazz still needs to go into motion first.

Last season, Love was in his third year with the Heat, appearing in 23 regular-season games, averaging 5.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.0 assists in just over 10 minutes a night. The 37-year-old will be entering his 18th season in the NBA next month, with the expectation being he'll spend that with a playoff-contending team.

As the start of training camps sits on the horizon at the end of September, it wouldn't be a surprise for that agreement to develop before this new Jazz roster is in the building to prepare for next season. But for now, Love's tenure with Utah continues to press on.

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