MINNEAPOLIS — Given the way the Minnesota big man has been ripping through the NBA — particularly from a rebounding standpoint — it would have been a welcome sight to many Nuggets fans.
According to coach George Karl, the Nuggets put feelers out to the Timberwolves in the summer to see if Love was available.
“We liked him last year when he was kind of inconsistent,” Karl said. “We made inquiries on Kevin Love this summer. (But) we didn’t think this. We didn’t think he’d make the huge step that he’s made from last year to this year. This is incredible.”
Asked how close the Nuggets were to acquiring Love, Karl said: “I know he was on our radar screen. I know there were inquiries. In some of the meetings we talked, his name was out there. It never got close, I know that.”
Love ripped the Nuggets in their first meeting this season for a careerhigh 43 points and 17 rebounds.
“He kind of rebounds like Wes Unseld,” Karl said. “He’s definitely a rebounder beneath the rim. And then I think the combination of his outlet passes. (He) just anticipates the angles, he seals, he plays before the ball hits the rim. I think he reads the ball before it hits the rim. He just has that knack, that commitment.”
