10:22pm: Knicks president Phil Jackson has been plotting to acquire Love via trade, according to Marc Berman of the New York Post. The Knicks’ interest in Love for next summer has been known, but they could try and get him sooner if he’s made available.
4:58pm: The Celtics have emerged as an increasingly intriguing destination for Timberwolves All-Star forward Kevin Love, league sources tell Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports. The Celtics’ draft position coming out of Tuesday night’s lottery could have a big impact on the feasibility of a deal with Minnesota.
If the C’s get their projected No. 5 slot, that could be a big asset in landing Love. If they move up and get a top three spot, that would make the decision harder for GM Danny Ainge. Love’s representatives with Excel Sports are pushing Timberwolves president Flip Saunders to find a trade acceptable to them before the beginning of summer free agency in July – preferably by the June 26 NBA draft, league sources say. As we learned earlier, Love has let the T’Wolves know that he won’t be signing an extension with them.
The Rockets are planning an aggressive pursuit for Love and the Warriors, Lakers, and Suns were mentioned as landing spots in Wojnarowski’s report from earlier. The Rockets are also in the mix since Kevin McHale has ties to Love.
The Celtics do not seem like a great fit. Even with Kevin Love their roster isn’t much better than the Timberwolves which also makes them a difficult trade partner. Sullinger and the pick are the only valuable assets I could see being moved so unless that pick moves up it seems like a weak trade package.
link is broken for the woj article