Kevin Love on Cavs’ Comeback, Mental Health, and Being a Dog Dad

Kevin Love made an immediate impact in the NBA with the Timberwolves in 2008, establishing himself as an elite lethal rebounder and one of the best power forwards in the game before winning a title in Cleveland with LeBron James and Kyrie Irving.

The 33-year-old has stuck with the Cavaliers ever since, staying loyal during a rebuild that has evolved much faster than many expected. After a 22-win campaign in 2020-21, the Cavs are the seventh seed with 43 wins despite missing out on three starters.

But perhaps Love’s greatest legacy is her off-court efforts to remove the stigma from talking about mental health, which began with a 2018 story she wrote for Players’ Tribune. He continues to advocate for mental health and acknowledges that his dog Vestry is a source of empathy and support for him and his family. He recently teamed up with Milk-Bone to promote his latest gift for his (and the man’s) best friend: birthday cake-flavored cookies.

Scoreboard sat down with Love to talk about the Cavaliers’ unlikely turnaround, mental health and the empathy that comes with it, and life as a dog parent.

—Anthony Puccio

You were part of a championship Cavs team that suddenly veered into a rebuild. Did you ever expect things to change so fast?

I knew we were going to be good, between our roster composition and our approach going into the season. We had, what, 22 wins last year? People thought we’d be under 30 and out of the playoff hunt, but we’ve made important steps.

First of all, our front office put guys in the right place to be successful: drafting Evan Mobley, trading for Jarrett Allen and Darius Garland taking the next step. It’s all been huge for us, and we’ve established something special here. Having 20 more wins than last year is a significant bump, so we’re very excited, but we don’t want to stop there. We want to continue to build and win as many games as we can, hopefully get through the entry game and if not, it’ll be great for us to get experience in the playoffs.

A quick turnaround is nearly impossible when a player like LeBron is gone. What can you say about the president of basketball operations, Koby Altman, the front office, the coaching staff and the culture they’ve put in place?

The front office has done an amazing job. Koby has gone against the grain. After drafting Collin Sexton, he said, “We can draft Darius Garland and have those two guys play together.” Obviously it was a huge success losing Collin and what he can do, but Darius took a leadership role. I think he is going to be a star in this league for a long time.

Then, [Koby] I traded for Jarrett Allen, and that was a big, big win for us. I love the way he operates and approaches the game, someone who has been so solid for us. And after that, he drafted Evan Mobley, who is Rookie of the Year and puts great players around that Big Three. I think they will continue to grow, and we are prepared to win and be good for a long time.

Add [coach] JB [Bickerstaff] — is someone I have trusted since I came to the league. He was with me for my first three seasons in Minnesota. So overall, I am extremely happy that our front office, coaching staff and JB will stick together for a long time so that we can all grow together. That is a beautiful thing.

Most of your career you have been a focal point, but you have played well as a sixth man. How has that adjustment been?

The first six weeks were definitely an adjustment: feeling the minutes, when will I get in the game, who will I play with, rotations. Other than my first two seasons, I didn’t come off the bench, so [I was] getting used to it.

Once December 1st arrived, I was ready to go. I got it, I knew what they were going to ask of me, I knew when I was going to be in and out of games, who I was going to substitute, what teams and lineups I was going to be playing with JB really gave me the green light to play my game and be myself, which was huge for me.

That trust from the front office and the coaching staff, to the group of guys within — we all trust each other, we all celebrate each other, and that’s what makes this group fun and easy to play with. I was able to succeed, but even more so after December 1 so far. I feel much more comfortable and solidified in that role.

You have led the charge in removing the stigma around talking about mental health, specifically in sports. How do you keep the conversation going?

I think that’s it: us talking, continuing the conversation by talking to people like you, the willingness to talk to others like it’s okay to share, it’s okay not to live in the shadows and expose yourself on a different level.

I always say that what is not revealed cannot be cured. So when you say these things, people can’t use it against you, like, yeah, I’m flawed, I’m not a perfect human being, but you can’t use me against me. This is just who I am.

I think it has personally allowed me to be a better listener, more empathetic, and even a better problem solver. Relationship-wise, it definitely made me a better fiancé, a better dog parent, a better teammate, friend, brother, son, you name it, because my communication and willingness to open up has really helped myself and others.

Even you, talking to me, talking to other people, that’s rewarding. You continue to have the conversation, and that helps everyone. Do I think we will ever completely get rid of the stigma? I don’t think so. But can we remove something and diminish it? Absolutely.

So I think we continue to have conversations like this. You think about the pandemic and everything that came with it after the fact: I should bring this [conversation] at the forefront, which can actually be a good thing.

When you look at the situation with Ben Simmons, people say he’s “faking it.” What would you say to those people?

It’s hard to discuss feelings, first of all. I think a lot of people like to throw shade at a safe distance. I learned from the late great Flip Saunders that everyone has a part to play, everyone can contribute a verse. I understand a fan despised. I get Philly fans – they’re a blue collar kind of place. You go there, it doesn’t matter who you are, even if you’re on their team and you don’t play well, they’ll let you know.

There’s a lot to unpack in there with Ben, but knowing him and being a friend, I think so, mentally and with his back physically, he’s getting better and it’s a work in progress every day. Look at it in terms of that: time has the ability to heal everything.

When I came back to Minnesota my freshman year, I got booed quite a bit. They still gave me a good video. The people there are nice in Minnesota, they’re great, but over time I’ve had a lot of those relationships. Even looking at the fans this year, being back there, you realize it’s all love. So a lot of those people who felt slighted said, “Let’s celebrate the team we have with Karl Anthony Towns, Anthony Edwards.”

I really hope that Ben will play again and play well. I know the first couple of times he plays Philly again, he’s going to feel some way, but in his heart, in his head, he’s a very good person. He just got caught up in a tough situation that wasn’t the easiest in every way, whether it’s Doc, Joel, the organization. I hope everyone had a good landing spot at the end.

How crucial is empathy, especially during such difficult times?

Enormous. Having these conversations, the ability to listen. When you reveal things at a certain level, everyone has their own process, their own timeline and how they want to expose certain things that they’ve been through. Empathy is probably number 1 right now. We must not hold back compassion and empathy at a time like this. There are a number of people around the world in many different settings and in many different places who need to feel hope and who need to feel love.

Speaking of love and empathy: your dog Vestry is clearly an important part of your life. What happened with Milk-Bone and this campaign that made you want to work with them?

Milk-Bone does a great job celebrating dogs. My fiancée Kate and I do the same with all dogs, and especially our own, Vestry. It has become part of the family. The birthday cake cookie they are launching was an easy fit: it has the vitamins and nutrients she needs. She tells us what she likes, she expresses it and when she asks for a gift, she knows what she wants.

It made an easy partnership between the two, and for Vestry we just want to take care of our dog however we can.”

Does Vistry travel, watch the games?

You know, I never thought I’d be that guy who has the smoothest posts and is always taking pictures of his dog, taking him everywhere, but having a Vistly, the breed that we have, has made me the dog dad that I never thought I would be. I would be, but I’m so happy to be. Vestry really changed my life in many ways. Obviously it’s going to be different when I have kids and all, but having Vestry is really amazing and a huge part of our family.

Guys, whether you come here, or we’re watching games, or I take her to [practice] installation, everyone loves it.