Don’t Look Now, but Kevin Love Is Returning to All-Star Form

CLEVELAND — After a premature obituary was written for him in 1897, Mark Twain once famously said, “The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated.”

It might be time that Kevin Love brushes off that quote as well.

The Cleveland Cavaliers forward’s career was left for dead by many after a trade from the Minnesota Timberwolves saw Love’s scoring average drop nearly 10 points per game and his rebounding average fall under 10 per game for the first time since his rookie season. He was the third option and reports of him leaving hung over his head like a rain cloud.

But a strong postseason, an NBA championship and a terrific start to 2016-17 have flipped the script. Now Love is averaging 21.0 points and 10.8 rebounds per game; the only other player averaging 20-and-10 this season is Anthony Davis.

What’s been the difference for Love? One theory is obvious.

“Any time you win a championship, you come back more comfortable,” Cavaliers coach Ty Lue said. “You feel like you’re on top of the mountain. All the confidence is there.”

The numbers back it up. At 15.6 field-goal attempts per game, he’s shooting more than he did during any other season with the Cavaliers. But of course, Love makes his living on the glass, and he is on a six-game streak of hauling in at least 10 rebounds.

Believe it or not, that’s his longest regular-season streak since being traded to Cleveland.

“I think more than anything it’s finding myself near the basket more,” Love said. “That’s why I’ve been rebounding. I’ve always been capable. It’s not like I forgot how to rebound.”

Love dealt with a hurdle during each of his first two seasons in Cleveland. First, he was learning a new system and a new role that required less offensive production from him.

“We don’t care about numbers as long as we win,” Lue said. “You have to sacrifice like Kevin had to do the last two years. He was a perennial All-Star, top-10 player in this league.”

Then last season, a playoff shoulder injury essentially eliminated most of what Love could do to prepare in the summer. He wasn’t even able to participate in full contact practices until the second week of October.

“So much is dependent upon using your upper body,” Love said. “Even just being able to lift, ride a bike, and do extra stuff off the floor that I wasn’t able to do last year.”

But now he’s healthy and comfortable. Lue says he “looks stronger when he’s …

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