Adrian Wojnarowski, the well-connected NBA writer at Yahoo! Sports, posted early Tuesday morning that the New York Knicks' efforts to retain star forward Carmelo Anthony when his contract expires includes going after Kevin love when his Timberwolves contract is up.
Wojnarowski writes: "LeBron James comes free too soon (2014), Kevin Durant too late (2016), and the best, biggest star available to New York has been validating management's wanderlust with an MVP-esque start to the Minnesota Timberwolves' season."
In other words, Love's averages of 26.4 points and 15 rebounds through the Wolves first eight games are attracting more than a little bit of attention.
Wojnarowski writes: "Almost assuredly, Love will exercise his early termination option in two years and take a strong look at where the free-agent landscape stands with the T'wolves. He could re-sign a longer, richer deal with Minnesota, or chase big-market platforms in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and perhaps elsewhere."
So what happens this season and next in Minnesota will definitely have an impact on Love's future plans. That means pressure on the Wolves to win and keep building, so that the Timberwolves are perceived as a destination franchise as opposed to a place to leave when the time is right and good money is on the table elsewhere.
Nothing is certain, save for the fact that you'll see Love's name in a lot of these reports as time goes on.
By the way, Wojnarowski doesn't exactly frame the Knicks' pursuit in a flattering way. He begins: Through the decay and debris of a crumbling infrastructure, chasing the championship parade that never marches, the New York Knicks' recruitment to retain Carmelo Anthony comes with the promise to pursue Kevin Love into the franchise's 2015 salary-cap space."
You can read Wojnarowski's full story here.
