NBA Rumors: Three-Way Trade Involving Kevin Love, DeMarcus Cousins and D’Angelo Russell Underway?

Aug 16, 2016 09:02 AM EDT

For some time now, Kevin Love has been in the center of trade rumors involving the Cleveland Cavaliers. But, according to new reports, it seems the team is preparing to release Love through a three-way trade involving the Sacramento Kings' DeMarcus Cousins and the Los Angeles Lakers' D'Angelo Russell.

According to The Bitbag, this massive trade would send Love to the Lakers, Russell to the Kings and Cousins to the Cavs. The trade may seem a bit confusing at first but looking at it from a different perspective, it all boils down to teams serving their individual needs.

Obviously, the Cleveland organization is the clear winner of this trade since Cousins has been a highly sought-after player ever since the offseason began. Given his playing style, this center can easily get along with LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and the rest of the Cavs.

Likewise, the Kings will also get a very reliable player through the triangle trade. During the summer league, Russell has showed how he has matured as a player. Once living in the shadow Kobe Bryant, Russell has displayed that he has the right skillset to become the leading scorer of the Lakers.

Although he's still not a veteran, Russell certainly has what it takes to become an NBA superstar, something that the Kings could take advantage of through a long-term contract.

However, although the Cavs and Kings would be getting what they want through this trade, it seems the Lakers are the likely losers in this deal. Sure, Love is still a good player. Fans even saw how determined he was to help the Cavs win the 2016 NBA Championships even though he was not able to adapt well to James' playing style.

But, like some players in the league, Love peaked early. He was able to reach his superstar potential when he was still with the Minnesota Timberwolves, his first team in the NBA. During his last season with the team, he averaged 26.1 points per game.

However, upon joining the Cavs, his scoring average dropped to 16.4, to 18.3, to just 10.7. Although this can be attributed to that fact that Love was playing alongside other major scorers such as Irving and James, he still seems like a risky player to acquire, according to The Halk Reports.

This factor alone could indicate that a trade involving the Cavs, Lakers and Kings may probably not happen with Cousins, Russell and Love. After all, the Lakers will most likely not agree to losing Russell in exchange for Love.