How good is Kevin Love ?

[BigTicket]

Heard a lot about this guy leading up to the draft, and more still after he got traded for OJ Mayo. Then came the first month or so with OJ Mayo playing spectacularly and Kevin Love not doing much, and people starting talking about how bad a trade it was. Since then though I don't think I've seen him mentioned, even if he's really starting to come along quite nicely.
Unfortunately though I don't have the opportunity to watch him play very often, so I'm hoping for some input here from those that do.

For the season he's averaging 10/9/1 in just 24 minutes per game, and his numbers are going up.
Lately he's been filling in at center with Al Jefferson out, and seems to be doing a pretty decent job, with averages of 13/10 in 27 minutes per game. Add to that the 17/10/2 at halftime he has against Utah right now and I think its time to talk about him again.

How good will he be at his peak ? Good enough to make the OJ trade worthwhile ?

[Rekindled]

peak = poor man's tim duncan. 21/12

[BigTicket]

peak = poor man's tim duncan. 21/12

That might be a bit optimistic, but he certainly does have a nice skillset for a bigman. Defense isn't exactly a strength of his yet though.

[Big Al All day]

He's good and getting better. Most rookies this season have had good stretches and then bad stretches. With Love he has just slowly been getting better. He never really seems to take a step back. He never stops working to get boards, and is one of the better offensive rebounders in the NBA.

Right now he has 22/12 against a pretty solid defensive team, Utah.

[twolvesfan]

Kevin Love is getting no love because he started out pretty bad. although right now he is a top 5 rookie. as far as i know he is the only rookie to be averaging a double double since the new year:rockon: . he is pretty bad defensively though:( but he is a very smart dude and at his peak i could see him getting 14 rebounds per, not sure how many points though.

[Big Al All day]

Kevin Love is getting no love because he started out pretty bad. although right now he is a top 5 rookie. as far as i know he is the only rookie to be averaging a double double since the new year:rockon: . he is pretty bad defensively though:( but he is a very smart dude and at his peak i could see him getting 14 rebounds per, not sure how many points though.


14 per is a little much. I wanna say 10. I mean Dwight is barely averaging 14 (last time I saw). I don't think Love could match that over a whole season.

And he really isn't that bad on defense. The problem is he just getting out matched. He is our center 6'9. Gomes is the PF 6'8. You can't expect those guys to do much defensively.

[BigTicket]

Edit: nm

[twolvesfan]

14 per is a little much. I wanna say 10. I mean Dwight is barely averaging 14 (last time I saw). I don't think Love could match that over a whole season.

And he really isn't that bad on defense. The problem is he just getting out matched. He is our center 6'9. Gomes is the PF 6'8. You can't expect those guys to do much defensively.
:eek: you think he would ONLY average 10 rebounds a game when he gets starter minutes (~36) hes already getting like 8.8 in 24 minutes as a rookie. in fact if i remember correctly a couple days ago against the raptors the announcers said that he was one of only 5 players ever to get 20% of the total team rebounds for players under 23

[twolvesfan]

Edit: nm
idk ive been frustrated with it as well. maybe mchale just doesnt want to burn him out:ohwell:

[theballerFKA Ace]

And he really isn't that bad on defense. The problem is he just getting out matched. He is our center 6'9. Gomes is the PF 6'8. You can't expect those guys to do much defensively.

Is Al Jefferson and Dwight Howard realistically much taller than that? Or is Kevin Love a legit 6'7, 6'8"?

[BigTicket]

14 per is a little much. I wanna say 10. I mean Dwight is barely averaging 14 (last time I saw). I don't think Love could match that over a whole season.

And he really isn't that bad on defense. The problem is he just getting out matched. He is our center 6'9. Gomes is the PF 6'8. You can't expect those guys to do much defensively.

He could get 12rpg right now if he got starters minutes, 14 in his prime doesnt seem unrealistic to me.

[BigTicket]

Is Al Jefferson and Dwight Howard realistically much taller than that? Or is Kevin Love a legit 6'7, 6'8"?

Kevin Love is 6'8 (6'9 in shoes) and he has a fairly short wingspan (6'11).

[Big Al All day]

Is Al Jefferson and Dwight Howard realistically much taller than that? Or is Kevin Love a legit 6'7, 6'8"?

I think Love is probably about 6'8. He's listed at 6'9, but he looks an inch or two smaller than Jefferson. But the thing with Dwight is his athleticism, that really helps him pull down boards. Al and Love might not be THAT much smaller but a lot less athletic.

I just don't see him keeping up a 14 rebound pace over an entire season. Now that I think of it maybe 11-12. But I don't see 14. His rebounds will also go down some when Al gets back, Al is averaging 11 boards per.

[Lebron23]

Peak Stats

21 ppg, 11.9 rpg, 0.9 bpg

[Big Al All day]

Peak Stats

21 ppg, 11.9 rpg, 0.9 bpg

That looks about right. But I think as long as he's playing with Al his stats will be negatively skewed because Al will get most of the looks down low.

[theballerFKA Ace]

Peak Stats

21 ppg, 11.9 rpg, 0.9 bpg

All-Star, 2nd team All-NBA numbers. I think Minny would be happy with that, and if they aren't I know the Lakers would.

[Basketball Dirk]

He averages 8.8rpg at 23 minutes per game ALL year.

He averages over 10rpg for a few weeks now.

At his peak he will definately average AT LEAST 12rpg.

[FIXED]

Peak Stats

21 ppg, 11.9 rpg, 0.9 bpg

Yeah almost right on I think his BPG will be like at 1.2 just a little over one.
To analysis the trade Mayo For Love. Love could be like a poor man's Tim Duncan in his prime, very fundamentally sound, boring to watch and will give you 20 and 10+ every night. Mayo has the chance to be the best SG in the League when Kobe retires/looses all his athletism, I think lilojmayo said he was #5 Ranked SG in Fantasy already as a rookie.
This goes down to the simple question would you rather have a poor man's Tim Duncan, or a poor man's Kobe Bryant. Kobe will put more butts in sits, more commericials endorsements, but Duncan will give you more wins.

[BigTicket]

Not sure I like the idea of prime Kevin Love = poor mans Tim Duncan, seems to me their games are too different, Kevin Love unlike Tim Duncan is undersized and not a very good defender.

I think Zach Randolph (without the attitude) or Elton Brand might be closer to what prime Kevin Love will be.

[highwhey]

Kevin Love is 6'8 (6'9 in shoes) and he has a fairly short wingspan (6'11).
Durant has a longer wingspan at 6'7. Then again, Durant is black.

[SilentObserver]

peak = poor man's tim duncan. 21/12
Nice joke, dude is averaging about 9 rebounds in his first year, in 24 minutes.
His peak 12 rebounds? Give me a break...

[momo]

I have watched very little of him in the NBA but a lot at ucla and I will say this about the guy. He is a GREAT outlet passer. He puts the rock right in guys hands halfway down the court insanely fast. It is uncanny.

[chocolatethunder]

I think Love is probably about 6'8. He's listed at 6'9, but he looks an inch or two smaller than Jefferson. But the thing with Dwight is his athleticism, that really helps him pull down boards. Al and Love might not be THAT much smaller but a lot less athletic.

I just don't see him keeping up a 14 rebound pace over an entire season. Now that I think of it maybe 11-12. But I don't see 14. His rebounds will also go down some when Al gets back, Al is averaging 11 boards per.

Howard is right around 6'9", no taller than that.

[Dresta]

peak = poor man's tim duncan. 21/12
lolololol no..........

[Dresta]

Durant has a longer wingspan at 6'7. Then again, Durant is black.
Durant is about 6'10 bruv not 6'7 and he has spagetti arms.

[gotbacon23]

he can lead the league in rebounding one day. already he is third in the nba in rebounds/48 minutes. Averaged 12.6/10.0 on 54% fg 78% ft in january in only 24 minutes per game and is averaging 13.0/10.6 on 53% fg and 86% free throws in february. dude is legit and can be an all-star.

[godofgods]

He is getting no love because he's white.

At his best he could be a 20-10 player.

[Valliant13]

Durant has a longer wingspan at 6'7. Then again, Durant is black.

Durrant is not 6'7. He's pushing a legit 6'10 these days. Look at him standing beside green sometime (who is 6'8-6'9).

[Valliant13]

Howard is right around 6'9", no taller than that.

I always thought that...but the last few games I've seen him I've wondered if he has grown. Bosh is pushing a barefoot 6'11+ and he doesn't seem to have much height on Dwight this year, where he did early in there careers. It could just be my imagination though.

[adamcz]

I don't think he'll ever be a 20 point scorer due to his inability to get mismatches, but he is already one of the best rebounders in the NBA, and I think that will always be his calling card. I could see him averaging 14/11, maybe even 16/11 in his prime. Unless he plays on a really high tempo team.

I know fans of a player hate it when you project numbers that are only slightly higher than their current numbers, but the numbers I just posted are great borderline all-star stats. I think he'll be the type of guy who sneaks into an all-star game or two during years like the this one with a few injury replacements.

And one last point, I'm not sure that I see him and Jefferson as an ideal combo. Eventually they'll probably have to trade one of them for somebody who's more mobile. But until they're trying to contend it probably doesn't matter and they should just keep a roster of talented players.

[El Kabong]

Peak Stats

21 ppg, 11.9 rpg, 0.9 bpg
I don't think he'd ever average anything close to that on a decent to good team. At least in the PPG department.

[wang4three]

You're probably looking at a smaller but better version of Brad Miller.

[kwajo]

I can see Kevin Love as being Antonio Davis 2.0. A bit undersized vertically, but a good workhorse player, a solid scorer (maybe 16 ppg in his prime), and a great rebounder in the 10-12 rpg range.

[chocolatethunder]

I always thought that...but the last few games I've seen him I've wondered if he has grown. Bosh is pushing a barefoot 6'11+ and he doesn't seem to have much height on Dwight this year, where he did early in there careers. It could just be my imagination though.
Well, I'm friends with Jameer so those are the words out of his mouth. Turkoglu is taller than Howard.

[Valliant13]

Well, I'm friends with Jameer so those are the words out of his mouth. Turkoglu is taller than Howard.

Cool. He's seems bigger when he's destroying my team in the Playoffs :)

[InspiredLebowski]

I know he's a pudgeball and always has been from what I can tell, but I'd like to see him shed 20lbs or so and see if it improves his quickness and stamina.

[DCL]

very high basketball iq. i think you can put him on any team, and he'd make that team better. he's also a lot more athletic than he looks.

[paintingshade]

he's an unbelievably good rebounder for his size. he has a TRB% (total-rebound percentage) of 21.6%, which is just higher than marcus camby, and just lower than dwight howard, two guys MUCH bigger than he. he's responsible for 4 of minnisota's 18 wins, which is about 22%, second most on the team. he has a very diverse skill set; that being said he's held back by his build. He's an incredible role player. to me he seems like a bigger shane battier that shows up more on the stat sheet. I don't know how well he complements al jefferson, as they are somewhat similar, but I think he could really shine on a contender.

[The Magic Man]

:eek: you think he would ONLY average 10 rebounds a game when he gets starter minutes (~36) hes already getting like 8.8 in 24 minutes as a rookie. in fact if i remember correctly a couple days ago against the raptors the announcers said that he was one of only 5 players ever to get 20% of the total team rebounds for players under 23


Okay, that wins the award for the most ridiculous stat of the day. Who researches this stuff?

[bdreason]

Great rebounder with a robust offensive skill set he still hasn't learned to utuilize at the NBA level.

He's undersized, especially at the C spot, so he struggles covering skilled offensive big men. He also doesn't have the best lateral movement, so he struggles to contain quick SF's and PF's.


We definatley haven't seen the best of Kevin Love yet. his defense can improve over time, especially if he puts in the work to become a "crafty vet", which I think he will. I'de also like to see him extend his range on the court. He has a nice stroke, and I'de like to see him extend the defense ala Mehmet Okur.

[saKf]

You're probably looking at a smaller but better version of Brad Miller.
This is probably the closest comparison.

A smaller Brad Miller with a lot of hustle. The guy really knows how to throw his body around to get after the boards.

[steve]

Okay, that wins the award for the most ridiculous stat of the day. Who researches this stuff?
Here. (http://www.basketball-reference.com/fc/psl_finder.cgi?request=1&sum=0&type=totals&per_minute_base=48&year_min=1974&year_max=2009&season_start=1&season_end=1&age_min=18&age_max=23&height_min=0&height_max=99&lg_id=&franch_id=&is_active=&is_hof=&pos=&qual=&c1stat=mp_per_g&c1comp=gt&c1val=24&c2stat=&c2comp=gt&c2val=&c3stat=&c3comp=gt&c3val=&c4stat=&c4comp=gt&c4val=&order_by=trb_pct) It took about a minute to look up on basketball reference. Now there are a few qualifiers here, it's Total Rebounding percentage from the 73-74 season until now because that's when offensive rebounds began to be counted (any TR% before that is slightly suspect just because the raw numbers are somewhat unknown). Also it's for players that played at least 24 minutes a game and also only of first year players (although in the end this only really knocks out Charles Oakley's rookie season).

[Dresta]

Great rebounder with a robust offensive skill set he still hasn't learned to utuilize at the NBA level.

He's undersized, especially at the C spot, so he struggles covering skilled offensive big men. He also doesn't have the best lateral movement, so he struggles to contain quick SF's and PF's.


We definatley haven't seen the best of Kevin Love yet. his defense can improve over time, especially if he puts in the work to become a "crafty vet", which I think he will. I'de also like to see him extend his range on the court. He has a nice stroke, and I'de like to see him extend the defense ala Mehmet Okur.
Except if he did that he wouldn't get nearly so many rebounds, the reason he rebounds so well is that he parks his fat ass in the paint every time up the floor, it's a wonder how he doesn't get called for more 3 seconds.

[twolvesfan]

Except if he did that he wouldn't get nearly so many rebounds, the reason he rebounds so well is that he parks his fat ass in the paint every time up the floor, it's a wonder how he doesn't get called for more 3 seconds.
wow a PF that plays in the paint:eek: kick him out of the league. that is what a PF/C is supposed to do you retard.


had to bump this so people realize that K. love is the real vanilla bean/white chocolate

[Dresta]

wow a PF that plays in the paint:eek: kick him out of the league. that is what a PF/C is supposed to do you retard.


had to bump this so people realize that K. love is the real vanilla bean/white chocolate
But this guy was saying that he should shoot more 3's and stretch the floor, that was my point, not that he shouldn't play in the paint dumbass.

[pohzoko]

He's a bad defender but he's a terrific rebounder.

[Jasper]

Someone drafted him (ie- in trade) and now is coaching him.

When Mchale leaves as coach and 3 years from now Love is generating 12/15 he'll have been groomed as Mchale jr.

Which isn't so bad , :D

[twolvesfan]

Someone drafted him (ie- in trade) and now is coaching him.

When Mchale leaves as coach and 3 years from now Love is generating 12/15 he'll have been groomed as Mchale jr.

Which isn't so bad , :D
thats true. if there is one thing Mchale is good at it is getting the most out of big guys

[twolvesfan]

k love baby:pimp:

[Meticode]

In his prime getting 35 minutes per game I couldn't see him doing more than 19/12/1 shooting 53%. Currently he's getting 24MPG and getting 9 rebs per game.

[2LeTTeRS]

Nice joke, dude is averaging about 9 rebounds in his first year, in 24 minutes.
His peak 12 rebounds? Give me a break...

Players generally don't improve that much as rebounders. 12 rebounds a game this year would put Love as the 2nd best in the league. I don't see whatsso bad with projecting him at 12 a game.

[Tool]

What could I get for Love in fantasy? I'm trying to sell him high lol

:hammertime:

[twolvesfan]

What could I get for Love in fantasy? I'm trying to sell him high lol

:hammertime:
:no: you should be ashamed of yourself trying to get rid of love

[76ers4life]

I thought that was the absolute dumbest trade in the darft I have seen recently. I don't give a rats ass what people think you don't trade O.J. Mayo for no freakin Kevin Love. I think that 18ppg from Mayo would have helped Minnesota out alot more this year than anything Love has givin Minnesota at this point. You team Mayo along with Jefferson two young studs who you could build around and all of a sudden Minnesota has a very bright future. 5 years from now that trade is going to make Minnesota look awfully bad I see a brighter future in Memphis than I do in Minnesota what a bad trade.

[twolvesfan]

I thought that was the absolute dumbest trade in the darft I have seen recently. I don't give a rats ass what people think you don't trade O.J. Mayo for no freakin Kevin Love. I think that 18ppg from Mayo would have helped Minnesota out alot more this year than anything Love has givin Minnesota at this point. You team Mayo along with Jefferson two young studs who you could build around and all of a sudden Minnesota has a very bright future. 5 years from now that trade is going to make Minnesota look awfully bad I see a brighter future in Memphis than I do in Minnesota what a bad trade.
its not nearly as bad as you think. we also got mike miller in the deal who is a very solid all around type of player. Love will also be a constant double double machine while i doubt mayo will ever even average a double double for the season (yes i know he plays a different position). also why is it that memphis ended up with the same record as us with a lot more talent?