Kevin Love has long since moved past the sting of the injury he suffered in last season’s playoffs that reportedly short-circuited the interest he had in signing with the Celtics, but Boston wasn’t the only hopeful suitor not in the mix when Love’s free agency began July 1st, as Chris Haynes of the Northeast Ohio Media Group and the Cleveland Plain Dealer details. Love insists he never truly considered going anywhere but Cleveland, even as Boston, along with the Suns and Blazers, hoped to meet with him, Haynes writes, confirming reports from this summer that linked those teams to the power forward.
“Truth be told, I didn’t even talk them really,” Love said to Haynes. “Teams have reached out to my agent, but as far as getting on the phone with anybody, the only person I got on the phone with was Griff [Cavs GM David Griffin] right when he called me at 12:01. That’s what people don’t understand that when I say that it was really done, it was really done.”
The thought of leaving did enter his mind, Love admits, even if he didn’t keep it there for long, but the Jeff Schwartz client said he ultimately prioritized winning over stats and felt confident his second season with the Cavs would be better than his first, as he explained to Haynes. See more from the Central Division:
- Pistons owner Tom Gores met with Brandon Jennings over the summer to encourage him to return to health and increase his value with free agency looming this coming July, and the rendezvous left an impression on the point guard, as Jennings tells Vince Ellis of the Detroit Free Press. “Yeah, especially during the time of when I was injured, and to hear what he had to say to me definitely opened up my eyes and just really helped me through a lot of stuff I was going through,” Jennings said. “Like a father-son type talk. It was some good things that were said, and he definitely gave me a different perspective on things I need to work on and what I need to come back and do.”
- The Pistons have recalled Spencer Dinwiddie and Darrun Hilliard from the D-League, notes Keith Langlois of Pistons.com (Twitter link). Hilliard scored a game-high 23 points in Sunday’s D-League game while Dinwiddie had only 7 points on 2 for 9 shooting.
- Joe Young is back from his assignment to the D-League, the Pacers announced. The rookie averaged 22 points per contest during his two-game stint with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.