Bulls Fall Short In Kevin Love Sweepstakes

By Chuck Sudo in News on Aug 7, 2014 9:00PM

The Bulls will see a lot of Kevin Love this season, presumably in a Cleveland Cavaliers uniform. The Cavs and Minnesota Timberwolves have agreed in principle on a trade that would send the All-Star forward to Cleveland, where he’ll form a “Big Three” by Lake Erie with LeBron James and Kyrie Irving.

The deal, according to Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski, includes Love opting out of his contract next year and re-signing with the Cavs for $120 million over three years. Minnesota will receive 2014 first-round pick Andrew Wiggins, 2013 first-rounder Anthony Bennett and a projected 2015 first-round pick, in return. The deal will not be official until at least Aug. 23. Wiggins signed his contract July 24 and, under NBA rules, a rookie cannot be traded until one month after signing his first contract.

The Bulls were believed to have offered Taj Gibson, 2011 first-round draft pick Nikola Mirotic and 2014 first-round draft pick Doug McDermott in exchange for Love. But don’t cry for the Bulls. They still accomplished a nice overhaul of their roster by signing Mirotic, McDermott and free agent Pau Gasol, while letting Carlos Boozer leave via the amnesty clause in the NBA collective bargaining agreement. With Derrick Rose looking like he has something to prove in Team USA tryouts and a returning Jimmy Butler and Joakim Noah, games between the Bulls and Cavaliers this season could be epic battles.