Kevin Love is currently a member of the Utah Jazz after being included in the three-team trade that sent John Collins to the LA Clippers and Norman Powell to the Miami Heat. Entering the 18th season of his career, the soon-to-be 37-year-old has no interest in being on a team that may win 15 games this season.
According to Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints, Kevin Love would like to make his way to Los Angeles, whether with the Lakers or the Clippers, if he can agree to a buyout with the Utah Jazz.
“Word around the league surrounding Love is that he wants to end up in Los Angeles, sources said…”
Jan 29, 2025; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat forward Kevin Love (42) looks on during warm-ups before the game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images / Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
Both the Clippers and the Lakers have an open roster spot still, but there are complications to adding an experienced veteran, even on a minimum contract.
“If the Lakers were to pursue Love and reunite him with LeBron, they would need to move off another contract since they are hard-capped at the first apron and just $1.1 million from this mark,” Siegel explained. “When looking at the Clippers, they are basically in the same situation, as they are $1.2 million from their first apron hard cap.”
The Clippers recently added Bradley Beal and Chris Paul to the roster, but to do so, they had to waive Jordan Miller and Drew Eubanks. Miller was brought back on a two-way contract, but they don’t have much room to play with, and there isn’t an obvious salary for the Clippers to get rid of unless they want to move on early from someone like Kobe Brown, who is still on his rookie contract.
The Lakers just had to do the same. They added Deandre Ayton and Marcus Smart through the buyout market, but had to waive Jordan Goodwin and Shake Milton in order to do that.
They could try to trade Dalton Knecht again or Gabe Vincent, but they’d likely have to add draft capital in order to do that. That doesn’t make a lot of sense to sign someone like Love, who is unlikely to play a major role on the team.
Kevin Love was born in Santa Monica, but moved to Oregon when he was young. In high school, he played for the Lake Oswego Lakers, and then went to UCLA for college, where he played with former Clippers Luc Mbah a Moute and Russell Westbrook.
Mar 7, 2025; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Heat forward Kevin Love (42) shoots over Minnesota Timberwolves center Naz Reid (11) during the first half at Kaseya Center. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images / Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
So, although Love hasn’t played for the Clippers or Lakers yet, there is still a lot of reason for him to want to be back in Los Angeles. If he can agree to a buyout with the Jazz, he could always sit out for half the season and sign when the calendar allows him to under the Clippers or Lakers cap constraints.
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