Kevin Love On LeBron James' Infamous Tweet: "That Hurt My Feelings"

Kevin Love recently opened up about LeBron James' infamous "stop fitting out, start fitting in" tweet, a moment that left a significant mark on his early days with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Speaking on the 'Pardon My Take' podcast, Love revealed the emotional toll the tweet took on him, reflecting on how it felt to be called out by one of the greatest players in NBA history.

"That hurt my feelings. I mean, it was like, you do the 23 and me and then you get like, I'm 80%, like I was majority that guy. Yeah, it's like 80% Kevin Love, you know, 8% Dion Waiters, 3% Kyrie Irving. You know, Deli's in the negative, right? it's one of those things now, like I look back, I probably did take it personal in the moment, and it was tough for me."

"Like, I had to adjust. That's what, all I wanted from those guys was to just have the recognition, like, oh, this guy's sacrificing a lot. And like, his learning curve having to do that is a little bit different."

"And like, considering where I came from to where I am now, like, I need to be, you know, I didn't have a lot of vets, and we almost had like a big revolving door in Minnesota. I think one year we had 27 different players. And guys that were trying to make their way into the league, and at one point, like Darko Milicic was our highest paid player on the team."

"He's making like six million, so we had one of the lowest payrolls, a new coach, a new GM, and just guys that didn't know how to win. So it was very, very tough for me to not have veterans and unders. So I had to go through it. And that was only, I think, 20, 30 games in when that tweet happened."

"So I think he was trying to find ways to get the best out of me, get a rise out of me, but also like, you know, I'm gonna play this to the media so that you come back and this doesn't happen again. So, you know, there was a lot to that, but since, I mean, Bron's a brother."

He likened the experience to receiving a genetic test result that overwhelmingly points to you being the subject in question. Love's comments highlight the personal and professional challenges he faced when he first joined the Cavaliers.

After being the centerpiece of the Minnesota Timberwolves for years, where he was a dominant force and a statistical juggernaut, Love had to adjust to a new role as the third option behind LeBron James and Kyrie Irving. This transition was anything but smooth.

He elaborated on how the tweet came just 20 to 30 games into the season, a time when he was still trying to find his place within a team that had high expectations but was still figuring out its identity. Love yearned for recognition of the sacrifices he was making. Love's struggles were compounded by his experiences in Minnesota, where he had little veteran support and a revolving door of teammates.

Love's candid admission highlights the challenges he faced when transitioning from being the star player on a struggling Minnesota Timberwolves team to becoming the third option on a championship-contending Cavaliers team. In Minnesota, Love was a dominant force, averaging 26.1 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 4.4 assists per game.

His performances earned him three All-Star selections, two All-NBA selections, and the Most Improved Player award in 2011. Despite his individual success, the Timberwolves failed to make the playoffs during Love's tenure, leaving him yearning for team success.

However, joining the Cavaliers required Love to sacrifice his role and adjust to being a complementary player alongside LeBron James and Kyrie Irving . The adjustment was not easy, as Love's stats took a noticeable hit. His scoring average dropped to 16.4 points per game, his rebounds decreased to 9.7, and his assists fell to 2.2.

The transition from being a team's centerpiece to a supporting role was a difficult pill to swallow for Love, who had never had a stable veteran presence or a winning culture during his time in Minnesota.

Despite these challenges, Love's time with the Cleveland Cavaliers was marked by success. He made four consecutive NBA Finals appearances and was a crucial part of the 2016 championship team that ended Cleveland's 52-year title drought. While his individual statistics may have suffered, Love's sacrifices contributed to team success and cemented his legacy as a champion.

As Kevin Love looks back on that time, he recognizes that LeBron’s tweet, while hurtful, was likely an attempt to motivate him and get the best out of him. Ultimately, Love and LeBron's relationship grew stronger, with Love concluding, "Bron's a brother." Despite the rocky start, their partnership in Cleveland brought the city an NBA championship and forged a bond that goes beyond the court.

Related: Anthony Davis Opens Up On What He And LeBron James Need To Push For A Championship

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