National Basketball Association

Cleveland Cavaliers player watch: Kevin Love's milestones to look for in 2016-17

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Oct 5, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) looks to pass in the first quarter against the Orlando Magic at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

With less two weeks left until the 2016-17 NBA season, here are the upcoming milestones to look for from Kevin Love this year.

Last year was an incredible season for the Cleveland Cavaliers. They had their ups and downs, from Kyrie Irving and Iman Shumpert‘s injuries to chemistry issues later on in the regular season and a 3-1 deficit in the Finals.

Despite the rocky road, the Cavs came out on top. They united and prevailed, giving the franchise its first ever NBA championship and giving Cleveland its first major sports title in 52 years.

While last season was a dream for Clevelanders and Cavs fans everywhere, it ended more than three months ago. Now we’re ready for more basketball and are counting down the days until the 2016-17 NBA season begins.

Fortunately, there are less than two weeks until the start of the new season. So while we wait patiently, we’re taking a look at all the milestones that various Cavs players can reach this upcoming year. Up next is Kevin Love, who was an important part of the Cavs’ championship run. At the age of 28 and with eight seasons in the NBA, Love has several upcoming milestones to watch for.

Apr 22, 2016; Auburn Hills, MI, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) backs down Detroit Pistons forward Tobias Harris (34) during game three of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Mandatory Credit: Tim Fuller-USA TODAY Sports

19,000th Minute Played

Kevin Love has never played a full season, whether it was because of injuries or coach’s decision. This has resulted in Love’s career average of games per season is 64.5. Despite that, Love has played plenty of minutes (16,889 to be exact), thanks to his career average of 32.7 minutes per game. If he plays his average number of minutes over his average number of games, he would end the season at 18,998 minutes. That’s just two shy of 19,000. Fortunately, Love has played more than 70 games in each of his last three seasons, so he’ll still probably be able to hit the 19,000th minute milestone.

Mar 23, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) shoots a three point shott in the fourth quarter against the Milwaukee Bucks at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

3,500th Field Goal

Love is known to be an offensive threat, so it makes sense he has multiple upcoming scoring-based milestones. During his time in the NBA, he has made 3,140 field goals and has a career average of 6.1 per game. With that number over his career average of 64.5 games per year, Love can end up with 3,533 field goals and pass the 3,500th field goal made milestone.

While Love averages slightly less field goals per game with the Cavs, he also plays more games with them. Last year, he averaged 5.3 field goals but played 77 games. So at that rate he would pass the milestone for his 3,500th field goal.

800th Three Pointer

In addition, Love is the only player in NBA history to hit 700 three pointers while also having a career average of more than 10 rebounds. This year, he can become the only player average 10 rebounds per game with 800 threes. He’s made 742 already and averages 1.4 three-pointers made per game. If he can hit that mark over 64.5 games, Love can wind up with 832 threes by the end of the year. Love averaged more threes last year with 2.1 threes made per game, so that gives him an even better chance to hit the 800 mark.

2,600th Two Pointer

Love can also hit a milestone in two pointers. Thus far in his career, Love has made 2,398 total and averages 4.6 per game. At that rate, with his career average of 64.5 games, Love can hit his 2,600th two pointers and more. Even with his lower 2015-2016 average of 3.3 two pointers per game over 64.5 games, Love would still hit the 2,600th milestone.

Jun 16, 2016; Cleveland, OH, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) shoots the ball against Golden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala (9) during the third quarter in game six of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

2,600th Free Throw

Although he can shoot the three, Love is a 6’10” power forward whose his roots lie in the post. When he’s aggressive in the post, he can get to the free throw line. He has already made 2,429 free throws and has a career average of 4.7 per game. If he can make 4.7 free throws per game over his career average of 64.5 games, he can shoot over 300 this year. That puts him past his 2,600th free throw and even past his 2,700th. Love averaged slightly less free throws with the Cavs last year at 3.4. So with that number, he wouldn’t hit the 2,700th mark but he would comfortably pass the 2,600th.

Jun 19, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) grabs a rebound against Golden State Warriors center Festus Ezeli (31) during the third quarter in game seven of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

6,000th Total Rebound

We know that he can shoot the ball and we also know that Love is a beast on the boards. This makes it no surprise he has several upcoming milestones in the rebounding department. First, we’ll look at the milestone he can reach in total rebounds.

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With 5,946 total rebounds in the books, Love needs just 54 more to reach his 6,000th. But with a career average of 11.5 rebounds per game, Love will get way more than that. If he grabs 11.5 rebounds over his career average of 64.5 games, he’ll get 741. This would put him at 6,687 total rebounds, well past the 6,000 mark. And if he does reach this milestone, Love would become the youngest active NBA player to get 6,000 rebounds.

4,800th Defensive Rebound

Love can also hit a milestone in defensive boards. After eight seasons, Love has 4,310 defensive rebounds and an average of 8.4 per game. If he gets that over his career average of 64.5 games, he can grab 541 this year. Adding that to his current total would put him at 4,851, comfortably past the milestone for his 4,800th defensive rebound.

1,700th Offensive Rebound

Love can get a milestone on the other end of the court as well. He has 1,636 offensive rebounds and averages 3.2 per game. At that rate over 64.5 games, Love would end up with 1,842 by the end of the year. However, when you share the court with the likes of Tristan Thompson, your averages are going to go down. Last year with the Cavs, Love averaged 1.9 offensive rebounds per game. But whether he plays his career average of games or the 77 he played last year, Love would still end up passing the 1,700th mark, even with the lower average.

May 21, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) looks to play a ball as Toronto Raptors center Bismack Biyombo (8) tries to defend during the second quarter in game three of the Eastern conference finals of the NBA Playoffs at Air Canada Centre. The Toronto Raptors won 99-84. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports

1,400th Assist

While Love is mostly known for his shooting and rebounding, he can also dish it out. He currently has 1,252 assists and a career average of 2.4 per game. If he can get that number over his career average of 64.5 games, he can dish out over 150 assists this season. That would put him just past the milestone for his 1,400th assist.

Jun 19, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors center Festus Ezeli (31) and Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) go after a rebound during the first quarter in game seven of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

400th Steal

While Love is often criticized for his defense, it doesn’t mean he can’t get a milestone in that department. As of now, Love has 351 steals and a career average of 0.7 per game. If he were to get that number over his career average of 64.5 games, he could wind up at 396, just shy of the 400 mark.

Fortunately for Love, he both averaged slightly more steals (0.8) and played more games with the Cavs last year. If he were to either get his career average 0.7 steals over the 77 games he played last year or get his 2015-2016 average of 0.8 steals over his career average 64.5, Love can grab his 400th steal.

Jun 2, 2016; Oakland, CA, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love (0) shoots the ball against Golden State Warriors forward Anderson Varejao (18) in game one of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

10,000th Point

We’ve already gone over all the ways that Kevin Love can score the basketball, so it should come as no surprise that he has an upcoming milestone in points. After eight seasons in the NBA, Love has 9,451 points, which means he needs 549 more to hit 10,000. The good news is that Love has a career average of 18.3 points per game. If he can score that many points over his career average of 64.5, he can wind up with a total of 10,631 points at the end of the year. However, Love averaged less with the Cavs last year at 16 points per game. But even with that slightly lower average, over 64.5 games, Love can still pass the 10,000 mark by several hundred.

Are you ready for Kevin Love to have one of his best career years or do you still doubt his fit in Cleveland? Let us know in the comments section or Twitter @KJG_NBA.

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