Coach K calls Love "outstanding," Love gets double-double in win over Slovenia and more
From Pete Thamel/New York Times: Tall and Nimble, Kevin Love Fits His Role for U.S.
"Kevin has been outstanding," Coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "Rebounds per minutes, he’s off the charts."
He added, "We have a lot of confidence in Kevin."
Love has fought through a broken hand and two losing seasons in Minnesota, and it has been easy to overlook his rare skills. He has flypaper hands, a soft shooting touch and is the Tom Brady of N.B.A. outlet passers. Ben Howland, who coached Love at U.C.L.A., calls him the Big Fundamental.
"The international game demands more skill, the ability to pass and play zones, to catch the ball in the high post and be able to make the passes he’s capable of making," Howland said in a telephone interview. "I don’t know that there’s a better big-man passer out there."
From Jonah Ballow's twitter account:
F Kevin Love VIDEO after scoring 10 pts & grabbing 11 rebs in win over Slovenia: http://j.mp/aVXuUM
Kevin Love is beastly. He’s now got 21 boards in 26:38 of playing time over the last two days. That’s 31.5 rebounds per 40 minutes. Not bad.
"That’s what I do," he says. "That’s how I make my money."
He admits, though, that his role is a little different than it is back in Minnesota.
"Playing with all these guys, they definitely open up the floor. I know that if I’m going to stay in the game and play minutes, I have to get out there and get every rebound. That’s kind of what coach tells me. Right before I go in the game, he says ‘get me every rebound.’"
And coach Mike Krzyzewski will probably be telling him that a little earlier in the game on Monday.
From Hal Spivack/Fanhouse: Spain, Rubio Showcase Talent Against New Zealand at FIBA Worlds
Sure - can you see Carmelo agreeing to an extension with the Kings or Timberwolves? Neither team is anywhere close to being in the playoffs, and giving up the number of pieces they'd have to give up to land Carmelo would put them even further away from the postseason. And, of course, there's absolutely no chance Carmelo would sign an extension in either of those places.
From Charley Walters/Pioneer Press:
The Timberwolves' Kevin Love had a cameo on a recent episode of HBO's "Entourage."