Miami Heat forward Kevin Love explained why he chose the Miami Heat over the Philadelphia 76ers when he was bought out by the Cleveland Cavaliers this season.
“Because of this,” Love told The Athletic. “It’s always been about win and win now. You always talk about culture, but until you get here, it’s pretty eye-opening that its level of professionalism is not really rivaled anywhere else. It’s a beautiful thing.”
Love has been an integral part of Miami’s success this postseason, and he came up huge in the team’s Game 5 win over the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the playoffs. Love shot 5-for-11 from beyond the arc in that game on his way to a 15-point, 12-rebound performance.
The Heat, despite getting the No. 8 seed, are in a great spot to make yet another Eastern Conference Finals after upsetting the New York Knicks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on Sunday.
The five-time All-Star also played well in that matchup, scoring nine points on 3-for-7 shooting (2-for-5 from 3-point range) while adding five rebounds and four assists.
While he’s no longer playing major minutes like he did earlier in his career, Love has been a solid complementary piece for a Miami team that lacked size prior to acquiring him in the middle of the 2022-23 season.
During the regular season for the Heat, Love appeared in 21 games and made 17 starts. He averaged 7.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game while shooting 38.8 percent from the field and 29.7 percent from beyond the arc.
In the playoffs, Love’s shooting has improved tremendously. The veteran is shooting 41.5 percent from the field and 42.9 percent from deep in six playoff games.
There’s no doubt that the Heat are once again contenders to make the NBA Finals this season. Jimmy Butler is playing some of the best basketball of his career, and the Heat are as battle-tested as any team in the playoffs.
Miami has made the Eastern Conference Finals in two of the last three seasons, and Love clearly believed in the team’s mission and culture when he decided to sign with the Heat earlier this year.
Both Miami and Philadelphia have 1-0 series leads in the Eastern Conference semifinals after Game 1 road wins.
