NBA Rankings: The 5 best power forwards in basketball

New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis (23) is fouled by Los Angeles Clippers forward Blake Griffin (32) after securing a rebound following a free throw attempt during the fourth quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. The Pelicans defeated the Clippers 98-96. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /

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Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Love (42) grabs the ball pre game at Target Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports /

2) Kevin Love, Minnesota Timberwolves

If Kevin Durant and LeBron James didn’t exist, Kevin Love would have been the best statistical player in the NBA last season, and it wasn’t all that close. Minnesota’s power forward averaged 26.1 points and 12.1 rebounds per game last season, and while those numbers are incredible in their own right, Love added a 59.1 percent true shooting that included nearly 38 percent from the 3-point arc as a burly power forward.

The biggest knock on Love at this stage is that he has never made the playoffs, and while that is certainly not an enviable position, he has been saddled with some questionable supporting casts. Is Kevin Love a great defender? Absolutely not, but he also isn’t the disaster that some portray, and if anything, he is probably league average on that end of the floor at this advanced stage of his career.

Narratives are all over the place on Love at the moment, especially in the wake of trade discussions surrounding Andrew Wiggins, but needless to say, he is an incredibly valuable player at 25 years old.

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