{"id":21914,"date":"2019-06-12T17:10:21","date_gmt":"2019-06-12T21:10:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lwosonnba.ms.lastwordonsports.com\/?p=21914"},"modified":"2019-06-12T17:10:21","modified_gmt":"2019-06-12T21:10:21","slug":"nba-rumors-kevin-love-to-the-oklahoma-city-thunder-and-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2019\/06\/12\/nba-rumors-kevin-love-to-the-oklahoma-city-thunder-and-more\/","title":{"rendered":"NBA Rumors: Kevin Love to the Oklahoma City Thunder and More"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"\">The <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/nba-teams\/golden-state-warriors\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Golden State Warriors<\/a> and the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/nba-teams\/toronto-raptors\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Toronto Raptors<\/a> are still battling for the championship while the rest of the NBA is now preparing for next season. Are the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/nba-teams\/oklahoma-city-thunder\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Oklahoma City Thunder<\/a> and\u00a0<strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/l\/loveke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Kevin Love<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>trade rumors true? Is there any team that is willing to give <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/d\/duranke01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Kevin Durant<\/a><\/strong> a max contract after the Achilles injury? Let&#8217;s take a look at the hottest NBA Rumors for today!<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Kevin Love to the Oklahoma City Thunder?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p class=\"\"><em>Rumor: The Oklahoma City Thunder can trade for Kevin Love.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Kevin Love trade rumors have been commonplace with the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/nba-teams\/cleveland-cavaliers\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Cleveland Cavaliers<\/a>. With <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/w\/westbru01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Russell Westbrook<\/a><\/strong> and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/g\/georgpa01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Paul George<\/a><\/strong> failing to lead their team to out of the first round of the playoffs, the Oklahoma City Thunder badly needed a change to put them in the right direction again. The Thunder had a successful regular season. But what might be the problem as they continue to disappoint in the playoffs? Thunder General Manager Sam Presti believes that something has to change to move forward. There is one trade that the Thunder could consider to improve their offense. That is trading for Cleveland Cavaliers&#8217; all-star forward Kevin Love.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">For that trade to happen, the Thunder should send <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/a\/adamsst01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Steven Adams<\/a><\/strong>, <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/r\/roberan03.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Andre Roberson<\/a><\/strong> and their number 21 overall pick in the <a href=\"https:\/\/lwosonnba.ms.lastwordonsports.com\/2019-nba-draft\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">2019 NBA Draft<\/a> to the Cavaliers. And the Thunder will receive Kevin Love and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/s\/smithjr01.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">J.R. Smith<\/a><\/strong>. This is a good trade for the Cavs as they return a defensive minded center who&#8217;s still young and can complement their rebuilding process. They also receive an additional first round pick.<\/p>\n<p class=\"\">And for the Thunder, they can add a reliable third option that already has the experience in the playoffs. Love is a tenacious rebounder and that&#8217;s what the Thunder need if they trade Adams. He can also provide consistent outside shooting that the team lacks.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Three Teams Still Willing to Sign Kevin Durant Despite the Injury<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><em>Rumor:\u00a0Despite the Achilles injury that he suffered in Game 5 of the NBA Finals, three teams said that they&#8217;d still sign Kevin Durant.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"\">Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant is at the toughest point of his career suffering a torn Achilles. And it might take him down for one whole season before he recovers. Before the injuries, Durant was playing the best basketball of his career putting incredible numbers in the first round of the playoffs. He was praised as the best player in the world but injuries truly are unexpected. But despite the injury, there are teams that are willing to still sign him even if he possibly misses the entire season.<\/p>\n<p>According to one NBA front office insider Bobby Marks, three teams will keep pursuing Durant in free agency despite the risk of him missing the 2019-2020 season. He said that the free agent market for Kevin Durant isn&#8217;t going to change much. Durant&#8217;s name has been recently linked to the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/nba-teams\/new-york-knicks\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">New York Knicks<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/nba-teams\/los-angeles-clippers\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Los Angeles Clippers<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/nba-teams\/brooklyn-nets\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Brooklyn Nets<\/a>. The Warriors still have the chance to offer him the max deal but he might consider those other teams.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Opting In is Kevin Durant&#8217;s Last Resort<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><em>Rumor: According to <strong>Adrian Wojnarowski<\/strong>, Kevin Durant&#8217;s last resort is opting in.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">&quot;I think opting in is the last resort.&quot;<\/p>\n<p>\u2014<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/wojespn?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@wojespn<\/a> on what he&#39;s hearing about Kevin Durant&#39;s decision next season <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/7u8mZH62h3\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/7u8mZH62h3<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Get Up (@GetUpESPN) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GetUpESPN\/status\/1138792032804192257?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">June 12, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Kevin Durant really has a lot of options in the off-season. But if there are no teams willing to sign him after the Achilles injury, taking the 31.5 million dollar player option is what&#8217;s left for him. Earlier this season, Durant told <a href=\"https:\/\/sports.yahoo.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Yahoo Sports<\/a> that he wanted the most money he could possibly get in his next contract. Golden State can give him that. But the Clippers, the Knicks, and the Nets are willing to offer him a max contract.<\/p>\n<p>Main Photo<br \/>\n<a id=\"JTD1mia-RPB3HZZhEdBC8Q\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/970198060\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'JTD1mia-RPB3HZZhEdBC8Q',sig:'CBVn50kk6RI28HXQdkuCnQZBGrG6Byw7zBHbknEpfyI=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'970198060',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Golden State Warriors and the Toronto Raptors are still battling for the championship while the rest of the NBA is now preparing for next season. Are the\u00a0Oklahoma City Thunder and\u00a0Kevin Love\u00a0trade rumors true? Is there any team that is willing to give Kevin Durant a max contract after the Achilles injury? Let&#8217;s take a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3110,"featured_media":21933,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[62,25,22],"tags":[182,69,227,297,4774,54],"class_list":["post-21914","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba","category-warriors","category-thunder","tag-golden-state-warriors","tag-kevin-durant","tag-kevin-love","tag-nba-free-agency","tag-rumors","tag-oklahoma-city-thunder"],"modified_by":"Tyler Marling","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21914","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3110"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21914"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21914\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21933"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21914"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21914"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21914"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}