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David Blatt: Kevin Love Is Playing Best Defense Of His Career

By Sam Richmond

Nov 24, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) defends Orlando Magic guard Victor Oladipo (5) in the third quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 24, 2014; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) defends Orlando Magic guard Victor Oladipo (5) in the third quarter at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports /
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Cleveland Cavaliers coach David Blatt says that Kevin Love’s defensive performance is at an all-time high for the power forward.

Kevin Love’s defensive woes throughout his NBA career have been well documented.

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Love’s not a defense-first player and is big reason why the Cavs have largely struggled on defense this season

However, on the heels of a Cleveland’s three-game wining streak sparked by improved team defense, Cavs coach David Blatt is praising Love for his defensive work.

From ESPN:

"“In general, I would like to say, I think Kevin Love is playing the best defense of his career so far,” Blatt said. “He can get better like all of us can, but he’s doing a good job. He’s buying into the system, into the principles, and he needs to continue to do that and we need to continue to involve him in the way that we are.”"

Love added that he believes he can continue to get even better defensively.

"“I’ve never really been known for that in my career,” Love said. “Being a lockdown defender is something that I know I’ll never be, but as far as being a team defender, being in the right spots, being physical, doing those things, I can get a lot better at that and just continue to break down film and see where I can get better out there. So yeah, I think it’s something that I can continue to buy into and get better at.”"

Love might be playing the best defense of his career, but that’s not saying much. And even if he continues to improve, he’ll never be a particularly strong defender. The fact of the matter is that Love’s inability to protect the rim is a concern for Cleveland and something that could ultimately hold them back in the postseason.

But improvement is improvement and Loves deserves credit for playing better in Cleveland’s past three games.

Love is averaging 17.3 points and 9.5 rebounds this season with the Cavaliers. Cleveland acquired Love this past offseason as part of a three-team deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Philadelphia 76ers.

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