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NBA Insider Reveals Where Kevin Love Wants to Play After Utah Jazz Buy Him Out

Originally posted on Dallas Hoops Journal
By Ashish Mathur | Last updated Aug 5, 2025 7:44 PM ET

NBA insider Brett Siegel of ClutchPoints revealed where Kevin Love wants to play after the Utah Jazz buy him out.

Love, who turns 37 in September, wants to play for the Los Angeles Clippers or Los Angeles Lakers.

“Word around the league surrounding Kevin Love is that he wants to end up in Los Angeles, sources said,” Siegel wrote. “There were some rumors that Love would want to go to New York, although there doesn’t seem to be much interest brewing from the Knicks.

“Both the Clippers and Lakers still have one open roster spot. But if the Lakers were to pursue Love and reunite him with LeBron, they would need to move off another contract since they are hard-capped at the first apron and just $1.1 million from this mark. When looking at the Clippers, they are basically in the same situation, as they are $1.2 million from their first apron hard cap.”

Love was traded by the Miami Heat to the Jazz, who will buy out the UCLA product soon.

A five-time All-Star, Love has ties to the Clippers and Lakers. Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue coached Love on the Cleveland Cavaliers and Lakers star LeBron James was teammates with Love in Cleveland.

Love, Lue and LeBron won the 2016 title together.

The Lakers lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the 2025 playoffs in five games, while the Clippers fell to the Denver Nuggets in the first round in seven games.

The Lakers added Jake LaRavia, Deandre Ayton and Marcus Smart this offseason, while the Clippers acquired John Collins from the Jazz and signed Brook Lopez, Bradley Beal and Chris Paul.

Love played in 23 games for the Heat last season. He averaged 5.3 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.0 assists while shooting 35.7% from the field, 35.8% from beyond the arc and 69.6% from the free-throw line.

The Timberwolves drafted Love with the fifth overall pick in the 2008 NBA Draft. Love has career averages of 16.2 points, 10.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 952 games with Minnesota, Cleveland and Miami.