Things seem to get weirder and weirder in Cleveland by the day. Take, for example, Friday night’s game against the Indiana Pacers. On one hand, it was a solid win for the Cavaliers, a 115-108 victory over a conference foe who will likely make the postseason this year. There were plenty of good things to take away, like a possible breakout game for the struggling J.R. Smith.
But there was also one moment that can best be described as “insanely awkward.” At one point, Kevin Love went up to grab a rebound off of a Pacers miss, and because Love is a good basketball player, he knows that he’s supposed to get the ball into the hands of a player who can push it up the floor. And what do you know, Isaiah Thomas is right there next to him, this should be easy.
Instead of a normal hand off or pass, though, Love did something weird: He bent over and stuck the ball in Thomas’ gut.
RT @skalakattack: Kevin Love just grabbed that rebound and handed it to IT like a toddler, and I am howling pic.twitter.com/yfjQD07qWN
— Anthony (@AnthonyG729) January 27, 2018
Love is 6’10 and Thomas is 5’9, so obviously, this looks really patronizing. Seeing as it happened in the same game that Love accidentally threw a hoodie onto Jeff Green, it might have been taken as Love was just goofing around all evening.
@unclejeffgreen 😡😡😡 https://t.co/gFdLxfnzpJ
— Kevin Love (@kevinlove) January 27, 2018
Joe Vardon of Cleveland.com said that might not be the case, as this is the latest thing that shows an “apparent rift” between the former AAU teammates.
Love was not asked in his group session with the media about the play, but there was little doubt, based on several conversations after the game with Cavs players, that he meant what he did.
Welcome to another tale of Cavs’ dysfunction, which they can’t seem to shake even when they win. Among the issues: an apparent rift between Love and Thomas.
The relationship between the two was in the spotlight last week after a team meeting that reportedly got a bit contentious. One of the main things that leaked out was that Thomas was the person who “led the charge” against Love, who was accused of faking an illness during a loss to Oklahoma City.
Who knows if there is a resolution to this, whether it be Love and Thomas talking things out, someone getting moved, or something else. But with each passing day, it’s becoming more and more obvious that something is up in Cleveland.
