Kevin Love has made his intentions with the Minnesota Timberwolves very clear. They either need to get better or he is jumping ship at the first chance he gets. Love signed a four-year, $62 million extension last season but gave himself the option of opting out after three years if he does not think the team is going to compete.
Love, who has yet to play in a playoff game for the Timbewolves, has confirmed that he thinks he made the right decision.
“I feel like we have to change to get to that next level, and I want to help drive that change and push that agenda,” Love said. “I think we deserve a good product. The coaches deserve a good product, but most importantly the fans deserve it. They were tremendous last year for us turning things around before Ricky (Rubio) went down. We just want to keep pushing the team in the right direction, and that’s what I wanted to convey.”
Love went on to add that he is excited about adding Brandon Roy and that if Ricky Rubio comes back healthy, he thinks the Timberwolves can be a very solid team.
Minnesota missed out on signing small forward Nicolas Batum when the Portland Trail Blazers matched the T-Wolves’ offer sheet. There are not many free agents left on the market that the Timberwolves could get that would vastly improve their team, but their biggest move this offseason may have been what they let go.
Love says there was some “bad blood” in the Minnesota locker room that is not there any more. Most notably, the Timberwolves have gotten rid of Michael Beasley, Darko Milicic, Anthony Randolph and Martell Webster. Love would not say which of these guys was causing problems for the team, but it definitely could have been any or all of them.
Now the Timberwolves move forward, hoping to create a new-look team centered around Kevin Love. If they can start competing and come together as a team, then they’ll most likely keep their franchise player. If not, then they’ll be starting over again in three years.
