Are we just going to ignore the monster season Kevin Love is having? (again) (again)

Koperboy · Nov 14, 2013

Wilezra said: ↑

He does it again!

33 pts / 8 rbs / 6 assists

10-16 FGM-A
1-4 3PM-A
12-14 FTM-A
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Putting up stats during regular season is one thing. Carrying them over into postseason is another thing entirely. I'm really eager to see how does Love perform in face of intensified defenses.

YOLO · Nov 14, 2013

Koperboy said: ↑

Putting up stats during regular season is one thing. Carrying them over into postseason is another thing entirely. I'm really eager to see how does Love perform in face of intensified defenses.
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hes hit clutch shots and game winners along the way already..that shouldn't be a problem for him

T-macsterful1 · Nov 14, 2013

YOLO said: ↑

hes hit clutch shots and game winners along the way already..that shouldn't be a problem for him
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I agree, I think it'll be a problem for the rest of his team. I've never really been a fan of Rubio but against elite defenders at his position, I don't think he'll do well in the playoffs.

SK34 · Nov 14, 2013

T-macsterful1 said: ↑

I agree, I think it'll be a problem for the rest of his team. I've never really been a fan of Rubio but against elite defenders at his position, I don't think he'll do well in the playoffs.
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Rondo is a perfect fit for timberwolves. They should trade Rubio and Bud 4 Rondo. Works for both teams although I don't know if salaries work.

On Love, he is elite no doubt. He hasn't has this great of a team yet and now that he does have a great team, he is helping them win more.

They are talented team that can easily be a 6th seed in the west or they'll start losing like trailblazers of last year.. How is the timberwolves Bench? What big men do they have in the bench? If they have a great bench, they can be the 5th seed.

chandlerbang21 · Nov 14, 2013

Koperboy said: ↑

Putting up stats during regular season is one thing. Carrying them over into postseason is another thing entirely. I'm really eager to see how does Love perform in face of intensified defenses.
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He's a PF that is effective in the post and on perimeter. Look at what mcroberds and hawes did to houston. Love will be alright because other bigs are hesitant to leave the paint. And unlike houston, Love has dependable teamates like martin that can draw the defense away from him.

redhotrox · Nov 15, 2013

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Kevin Love has been the NBA's most valuable player so far this season. Here's how. Per Diem: <a href="http://t.co/zlRZKpjRvt">http://t.co/zlRZKpjRvt</a> ($)</p>— Kevin Pelton (@kpelton) <a href="https://twitter.com/kpelton/statuses/401405131771498496">November 15, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Quick, who's been the NBA's most valuable player this year? It's neither Kevin Durant nor LeBron James, both off to relatively mortal starts. Not Chris Paul either. Paul George? You could make an argument based on his defense, but no. Not even the unstoppable Anthony Davis. No matter your metric of choice -- WARP, PER, win shares -- Kevin Love tops them all, and with a historic level of play.

So far, Love's rate of win shares accumulated per 48 minutes (.342) is the best in NBA history, per Basketball-Reference.com. Win percentage, the per-minute component of my wins above replacement metric, is a bit more demure -- Love would merely rank third since player turnovers were tracked starting in 1978-79 if he kept up this pace (.828), behind LeBron James' 2008-09 campaign (.839) and Michael Jordan in 1988-89 (.830).

Here's how Love has taken his efficiency to otherworldly levels.

An optimized shot chart
Imagine that every player in the NBA had the same shooting ability. (I wonder if you can.) In such a scenario, the only way players could distinguish themselves in terms of their shooting efficiency would be the average value of their shot attempts. As analytical teams -- most notably the Houston Rockets and the Philadelphia 76ers -- have recognized and exploited, there's plenty of advantage to be gained from simply shifting from less efficient 2-point attempts away from the basket to high-value 3-point attempts, shots around the rim and free throws.

Nobody has to tell Love. So far this season, per NBA.com/Stats, he has taken a third of his shots in the restricted area around the basket and slightly more than a third from beyond the 3-point line -- meaning Love has more of both efficient types of shots than 2-point attempts away from the rim. That combination isn't completely unique, but it is rare for big men. The other post players to accomplish the feat so far this season (minimum 50 FGAs) are Josh McRoberts of the Charlotte Bobcats and Philadelphia's Spencer Hawes.

Of course, Hawes and McRoberts aren't go-to scorers like Love, whose 27.1 points per game rank second in the league behind Kevin Durant. Typically, high scorers must rely on the ability to make low-percentage shots at a high rate to succeed offensively. Just two players averaging at least 20 points per game meet the qualification of more shots in both the restricted area and from 3-point range than in between: Love and Houston's James Harden. Add in free throws -- Love attempts eight per game -- and his expected true shooting percentage based on the average value of his shot attempts ranks fifth among 20-PPG scorers:

Player Team RA% Paint% Midrange% 3PA% FTA% xTS%
Kevin Durant OKC .349 .103 .286 .262 .213 .586
James Harden HOU .343 .100 .143 .414 .149 .577
Eric Bledsoe PHX .423 .117 .207 .252 .146 .573
LeBron James MIA .453 .125 .203 .219 .133 .569
Kevin Love MIN .333 .137 .179 .351 .144 .560

Of course, Love is also a good shooter, particularly around the rim (he's made 73.2 percent of his attempts there) and at the free throw line (84.7 percent), so despite only average results from beyond the arc his .611 true shooting percentage is outstanding for a high scorer. Not bad for someone with "limited natural ability."

Still dominating the glass
Don't think that focusing on efficient scoring has caused Love to forget his roots as a rebounder. For all the time he spends on the perimeter -- his 59 3-point attempts lead the NBA -- Love continues to be a presence on the offensive glass, securing 10.5 percent of the Timberwolves' misses. And he's as dominant as ever at the other end. Only Pau Gasol of the Los Angeles Lakers (32.7 percent) surpasses Love's defensive rebound rate (31.3 percent). Combine the two and Love is second to the Rockets' Dwight Howard (21.3 percent) in total rebound rate (20.9 percent), as well as rebounds per game.

Adding assists to the mix
The biggest evolution in Love's game this season has been his increased playmaking. While Love has always been a good passer for a big man, his 5.9 assists per 100 team plays this season is nearly double last year's assist rate (3.1) and up 70 percent over his previous career high (3.5 in 2009-10). That figure ranks third among big men, trailing the aforementioned, surprisingly versatile McRoberts (7.0) and Tim Duncan (6.2).

The Timberwolves are taking advantage of Love's ability as an outlet passer this season, specifically in conjunction with forward Corey Brewer's ability to run the floor. Brewer is releasing quickly in transition, and Love is finding him over the top with long outlets, even off made baskets. As a result, per NBA.com/Stats, more than a third of Love's assists this season (16 of 46) have gone to Brewer alone. Thirteen more have gone to fellow newcomer Kevin Martin.

Those extra assists have come without any increase in Love's turnover rate, a career-low 9.1 percent of his plays. So Love's assist-to-turnover ratio (2.30) is actually better than the average point guard's (2.14).

Team success
Offensively, Love's numbers so far this season aren't that different from what he did in 2010-11. The difference, especially in win shares, is his fine defensive rating, built largely on Minnesota's success as a team. Despite losing their best defender, forward Andrei Kirilenko, the Timberwolves have improved from 14th to sixth in defensive rating. Since Minnesota is also sixth in points scored per possession, the team has started 6-3 with an impressive plus-8.6 point differential, good for third in the league.

If the Timberwolves remain among the contenders in the Western Conference, Love's brilliance will be difficult for MVP voters to deny. As Per Diem colleague Tom Haberstroh explained on Tuesday, the MVP ballot is the exclusive province of players from good teams. Love finished a distant sixth in the voting two years ago, but with a better team around him and an even more efficient game, he's poised to move up the ballot and merit a spot on the All-NBA first team if he keeps up anything like this pace.
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Are we just going to ignore the monster season Kevin Love is having? (again) (again)

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