Cleveland Cavaliers: Kevin Love’s role after injury

In just a handful of games, Kevin Love shows his role with the Cleveland Cavaliers will clearly be much different with than it was the past few years. Here’s how the big man is revamping his play.

Kevin Love didn’t mince words in the Cleveland Cavaliers 112-107 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night. Towel over his shoulder, Loved exited the match late with a season-high 32 points already in the can. His minutes restriction prevented him from the floor in the game’s final moments.

“That’s all I got tonight, so don’t F this up,” he joked with his teammates in the huddle, according to Cleveland.com.

His lighthearted message worked on the young squad. Cleveland preserved a five-point win over the Grizzlies with the upstart Cedi Osman drilling a late 3-pointer.

Collin Sexton poured in 20 points. Ante Zizic, at times, outplayed Jonas Valanciunas in an 18-point night.

With three wins in their last four games, Cleveland suddenly looks like a team with solid potential as opposed a franchise begging for luck in the lottery.

The improved play correlates with Love’s return to the team. The Cavs are 3-1 in games Love has played since he came off the injury list.

“Duh,” you might say. Of course, Cleveland will play better with a five-time All-Star on the floor. But positive signs aren’t just reflected in the scoreboard.

First, the Cavaliers star player us undergoing a clear career metamorphosis. No one would blame Love for camping in the post after recovering from foot surgery, as opposed to flying around the perimeter. It would limit his distance traveled, easing pressure on the foot. But that’s the old Love. The new Love is an outside gunner who utilizes picks and creates his own looks.

Love repeatedly worked screens against Memphis, pushing off the recovering foot as he kicked from the paint to the perimeter. Quickly he moved, creating separation from defenders. With the Minnesota Timberwolves, Love lumbered in the paint, gobbling rebounds while settling for stand-still threes. With LeBron James, he camped in corners, waiting for open looks. Now, he’s using his footwork to create his own shot.

Like here, where he tightropes the 3-point line like a guard. He’s moving more and more like his former teammate, Kyle Korver, every day.

Maybe he picked up a thing or two from one of the game’s all-time great shooters. Korver aged well with his best years in his early thirties.

No longer able to consistently bang bodies with the game’s most brutal big men, Love potentially feels a Korver-like game is the best way to utilize his skill set in the coming years. Twenty-three 3-point attempts over three games is a sign of things to come.

Second, Love his ready to lead. In Minnesota, he was the wolf pup; this young, chubby kid with a style that caught the league off guard. He played third-fiddle in LeBron’s Cleveland, usually only making headlines as a rumored trade piece.

For the first time, Love controls the megaphone. He is Cleveland’s best mouthpiece. His playful honesty in the huddle and soft-spoken, yet detailed approach to the post-game interview reveals that Love’s propensity for leadership.

He’s not in-your-face or over-the-top. Thankfully, a boisterous, overly competitive captain doesn’t fit this young squad. A Kobe Bryant or Jimmy Butler may exhaust the team. Love’s suaveness suites the personality or Osman, Jordan Clarkson and Larry Nance Jr. Plus, Sexton already acts as a manic competitor.

This roster needs something like a Fonzie for a leader. That’s Love. He’s like the cool, older brother. His job is to lessen the growing pains, providing the experience of NBA champion. Coach Larry Drew, or whomever the next coach is, should provide the Gladiator-like pregame speeches. The team looks to Love for the calm guidance for the rest of the year and beyond.

So, while Love is undergoing his own renaissance, he’ll be the steady hand guiding this team. Now healthy, that appears to be his two-part role; redefine his own game with more movement and more outside looks. In eight games this year, he’s averaging his second most three attempts per contest at 6.3.

The past couple of weeks have been the most positive for the Cavs. Apart from coupling some victories together, Osman is playing with more consistency. Sexton continues to play well, averaging 17.6 points, 4.0 rebounds and 3.8 assists this month. Nance is improving as well.

Now their mentor has returned. Let’s see if this bunch really blossoms.