Kevin Love says he 'loves' Cavaliers teammates after on-court outburst

Tom Gatto

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Kevin Love says he 'loves' Cavaliers teammates after on-court outburst image

Kevin Love knew how it looked — that he was mad at point guard Collin Sexton and was quitting on his team during another Cavaliers loss Saturday night.

Love was seen walking half-heartedly on a Cleveland possession with the seconds closing in the second quarter, and the Cavs down 64-51. Love called for a pass from Sexton, getting more frustrated as he kept calling for the ball. When he got the pass, he turned around immediately and flung it to Cedi Osman.

Love addressed at least the first impression in a postgame Instagram post, that included a photo of him with an arm around Sexton.

As for that second impression, Love seemed reluctant to say anything.

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Love's post was essentially a response to two videos that made him look bad on social media:

The veteran forward did these things hours after he reportedly clashed with Cavaliers general manager Koby Altman over a $1,000 fine Love received from the team for this on-court outburst Jan. 31 in Toronto (details via Cleveland.com).

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Kevin Love doesn’t look too happy. 👀(@karol__sliwa)

A post shared by House of Highlights (@houseofhighlights) on

This was the second time Altman has spoken to Love about his attitude and body language this season, Cleveland.com reported. The first meeting took place in November, after which Love played much better. The Athletic (subscription required) reported that there was also a verbal altercation late last season in which Altman threatened to fine Love. Sources told The Athletic that Love responded, "Go ahead. I have plenty of money."

Now, though, with the Cavs at 10-25 under first-year coach John Beilein, Love is acting out on the court again. He finished with 12 points and three rebounds in 30 minutes Saturday as Cleveland lost at home to Oklahoma City, 121-106.

If Love is intent on leaving Cleveland via trade, then he might have to wait a while, mostly because of the money he's still owed. Love is in the first year of a four-year, $120.4 million contract. He is due to make $91.5 million over the final three seasons of the pact, per Spotrac.com.

Tom Gatto

Tom Gatto Photo

Tom Gatto joined The Sporting News as a senior editor in 2000 after 12 years at The Herald-News in Passaic, N.J., where he served in a variety of roles including sports editor, and a brief spell at APBNews.com in New York, where he worked as a syndication editor. He is a 1986 graduate of the University of South Carolina.