- Six seasons with Timberwolves (2008-14)
- Averaged 19.2 points and 12.2 rebounds per game
- 3x All-Star with Timberwolves
Kevin Love was another draft night acquisition by the Timberwolves. Minnesota had selected O.J. Mayo with the third pick, and later in the evening sent him to Memphis as part of a six-player trade that brought Love, the fifth pick, back to Minnesota.
Love was solid as a rookie, coming off the bench for more than half the season and averaging 11.1 points and 9.1 rebounds per game.
The breakthrough came in year two. While Love only averaged 14 points and 11 rebounds on the year, the 31-31 game put him on the map.
From that point forward, head coach Kurt Rambis, who had refused to publicly acknowledge that Love was already the best player on the squad and bristled when the media suggested such an idea or when the issue of Love’s minutes was mentioned as a topic, was forced to give consistent minutes to the second-year big man.
Love was an All-Star in his third season as he averaged 20.2 points and a league-leading 15.2 rebounds per game. He added a consistent 3-point shot to his game, shooting 2.9 attempts per contest and hitting on 41.7 percent.
After another All-Star season in 2011-12, Love broke his hand prior to the 2012-13 campaign and re-injured it during the season. It was a lost year, but he was back on the All-Star team by 2013-14, the final year with Rick Adelman in Minnesota. That offseason, Flip Saunders traded Love to Cleveland in exchange for Andrew Wiggins and other ancillary pieces.
To date, Kevin Love is the second-best player to play for the Timberwolves, although Karl-Anthony Towns is on the precipice of passing him.
Speaking of KAT…