Love agreed to a two-year, $3.7 million deal with a player option for 2024-25 to return to the Heat on Friday, Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press reports.
The second year of the deal will be a player option. Love made 21 appearances for the Heat last season which included 17 starts. The veteran forward averaged 7.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.4 three-pointers per game, and he figures to provide similar production during the 2023-24 campaign.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Modest production in loss
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Love totaled three points (1-4 FG, 1-4 3Pt), two rebounds, two blocks and one steal over 14 minutes during Monday's 94-89 loss to the Nuggets in Game 5 of the NBA Finals.
After not playing in Game 1 of the Finals, Love started the next four contests but provided modest production, posting 6.8 points and 4.5 rebounds in 17.5 minutes. After the veteran's surprise departure from Cleveland, he latched on with Miami and carved out a pretty consistent role right away. Love is set to be a free agent this offseason, and it's unclear if the two sides have any mutual interest in running it back next season.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Starting Game 2
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Love will start Sunday's Game 2 matchup against the Nuggets, Jared Greenberg of NBA on TNT reports.
Love returns to the starting lineup ahead of Caleb Martin, who is available despite a non-COVID-19-related illness. Love has not played in the last three contests for the Heat and saw just 12.4 minutes per game in his five starts against Boston in the Eastern Conference Finals.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Won't start Saturday
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Love is not in the starting lineup for Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Celtics on Saturday, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.
Love moves to the bench in favor of Caleb Martin, who will get the nod at power forward. The veteran will come off the bench for the first time since Game 2 of the first-round series against the Bucks. He's averaging 6.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game in the playoffs.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Good to go for Game 4
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Love (lower leg) is available for Tuesday's Game 4 against Boston, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.
Love has been upgraded from probable to available Tuesday despite suffering a left lower-leg muscle strain in Game 3. The veteran big man has started in the first three contests of the series but has yet to surpass 16 minutes.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Probable for Game 4
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Coach Erik Spoelstra said Monday that Love is probable for Tuesday's Game 4 against the Celtics due to a left lower-leg muscle strain, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.
Love exited Sunday's Game 3 win in the first quarter due to his injury and didn't return. Although he was sidelined down the stretch, it seems likely he'll be able to suit up Tuesday as the Heat attempt to sweep Boston. The 34-year-old had a limited impact over the series' first two games, averaging 4.0 points and 5.5 rebounds in 15.5 minutes.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Questionable to return Sunday
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Love (ankle) is questionable to return to Sunday's Game 4 matchup with the Celtics.
Love had an excellent start to the game, posting five quick points and punishing the Celtics' smaller starting lineup. However, he appeared to be hobbled for many positions before eventually leaving for the locker room with an apparent ankle injury. The veteran big man was able to return to the bench in a timely manner and seems to be fairing well, jogging on the sideline and getting shots up with teammates at halftime. The Heat will be starting Caleb Martin in the second half instead of Love, making his return unlikely despite no official word from the team.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Scores three points in start
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Love closed Friday's 96-92 victory over the Knicks in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals with three points (1-1 FG, 1-1 3Pt), three rebounds and one assist over 16 minutes.
Love started Friday but played just 16 minutes in the victory. Both Kyle Lowry and Caleb Martin saw more playing time than Love, a trend that is likely to stick moving forward. While Love does provide some floor spacing for the Heat, his inability to defend limits what he can do on the court.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Modest production as starter
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Love posted six points (2-6 FG, 2-6 3Pt), seven rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal across 21 minutes during Saturday's 121-99 win over the Bucks in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.
Duncan Robinson started Game 2 in place of Tyler Herro (hand), but Miami opted to go big in Game 3 with Love replacing Robinson in the first five. However, despite moving into the starting lineup, the veteran forward played just 21 minutes and failed to make a major statistical impact. Over the first three games of the series, Love has averaged 9.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.4 steals-plus-blocks in 18.3 minutes.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Starting Saturday
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Love will enter the starting five for Saturday's Game 3 versus Milwaukee.
Love will replace Duncan Robinson, who drew the start in Game 2 after Tyler Herro sustained a broken hand in the series opener, in the first unit. In 17 starts with Miami this season, Love has averaged 7.2 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.9 assists over 20.8 minutes.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Leads from deep in strong outing
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Love closed Sunday's 130-117 victory over Milwaukee in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals with 18 points (5-9 FG, 4-7 3Pt, 4-4 FT), eight rebounds and one assist in 23 minutes.
Love posed a team-high-tying mark from three while leading the Heat bench in scoring and rebounds in a near double-double performance. During the regular season, Love surpassed the 15-point mark on six occasions leading into the playoffs.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Good to go Sunday
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Love (ribs) is available for Sunday's game against the Magic.
Love missed Friday's game against the Wizards with bruised right ribs but was taken off the injury report ahead of Sunday's regular-season finale. With the Heat battling a multitude of injuries, Love could be pushed into a larger role.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Won't play Friday
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Love (ribs) will miss Friday's contest versus the Wizards, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald reports.
Love will join the numerous Heat players who will sit out Friday's affair as the Heat turn their attention toward preparing for postseason play. With both Love and Bam Adebayo (quad) sitting out, look for Cody Zeller, Omer Yurtseven and Orlando Robinson to potentially all factor in some.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Listed as questionable
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Love is questionable for Friday's game against Washington due to a right rib contusion.
Bam Adebayo (quadriceps), Jimmy Butler (hand) and Kyle Lowry (knee) have all been ruled out already, while Love, Tyler Herro (quadriceps) and Max Strus (finger) are all questionable, so Miami is in danger of rolling out a skeleton crew versus the Wizards. However, if Love is available, he would be a candidate for a starting role and increased usage with Adebayo and Butler sidelined.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Posts 18 points in bench role
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Love closed Saturday's 129-122 win over Dallas with 18 points (5-9 FG, 2-5 3Pt, 6-6 FT), five rebounds, one assist and one steal in 19 minutes.
Love moved to the bench Saturday, turning in his best performance in quite some time. With Bam Adebayo (hip) sidelined, the Heat opted to mix things up a bit, moving Cody Zeller and Max Strus into the starting lineup. Given Love's recent struggles and his strong showing on the second unit Saturday, he could end up sticking in the starting five even if Adebayo is back in action Tuesday at Detroit.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Moves to bench
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Love isn't in the starting five for Saturday's game versus Dallas, Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.
Love will be replaced by Max Strus in the starting lineup Saturday. The veteran Love will come off the bench for the first time since joining the Heat.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Modest production in loss
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Love contributed five points (2-4 FG, 1-1 3Pt), three rebounds and two assists in 19 minutes during Saturday's 129-100 loss to Brooklyn.
Love continues to operate as a starter for Miami, but he played fewer minutes than Max Strus and Caleb Martin, who both outproduced the veteran forward as well. Across 15 appearances with the Heat, Love is averaging just 7.6 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 21.1 minutes per game.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Diminished role continues
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Love registered 10 points (3-7 FG, 3-7 3Pt, 1-2 FT), six rebounds and three assists over 18 minutes during Wednesday's 138-119 win over Memphis.
Love remained in the starting unit Wednesday, although he is not playing the minutes typically associated with an NBA starter. It is unclear why the coaching staff continues to run with Love as the starter, given how much better the team looks with him off the floor. Outside of limited stream appeal, Love is not someone to consider outside of deeper formats.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Good to go Friday
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Love (ribs) is available for Friday's matchup against the Cavaliers, Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald reports.
As expected, Love will appear in a second straight game despite bruised ribs. Since joining the Heat, he's averaged 7.6 points, 7.4 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 22.1 minutes.
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Heat's Kevin Love: Likely to play Friday
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Love is probable for Friday's game versus Cleveland due to a right rib contusion.
Love missed Monday's 130-128 loss to Atlanta with the same injury, but he returned to action Wednesday, reclaiming his spot in the starting five and finishing with eight points (4-7 FG, 0-2 3Pt), eight rebounds, two assists and one steal across 21 minutes. The veteran big man will likely continue to play through the injury Friday, though because the Heat are entering the front end of the back-to-back set, it wouldn't be a major surprise if he was downgraded to out ahead of the 8 p.m. ET tipoff. Even if Love plays Friday against one of his former teams, he'll still be a candidate to sit Saturday in Orlando.
