On Feb. 7, at the Rockets Loan Arena, Kevin Loew ignited the court with a brilliant back pass.
It was a home game for the Cavaliers against the Pacers, who were played by their opponents for a 23-5 start as soon as they came up, and at one point, trailed by 20 points.
At the start of the fourth quarter, the Cavaliers were still seven points behind their opponents 61-68. Then, the drama begins.
In the next 3 minutes and 10 seconds, the Cavaliers hit all seven consecutive shots, setting off a round of crazy 19-0 counterattacks, and finally won the game 98-85.
The seven game-changing goals all came from Kevin Löw and Chedy Osman, and the goal mentioned in the opening paragraph was a successful connection between the two.
The brilliant performance, which could have locked in the season's top ten assists in advance, forced championship coach Rick Carlisle to call out a third timeout in just 2 and a half minutes, and The 33-year-old Loew, excited like a child, and his teammates frantically bumped their chests to celebrate. At this moment, he had left all the depressions of the past few years behind him...
Once upon a time, Loew was also the proud son of heaven, the creator of various perverted data records, the NBA dominant figure, in the third season of his career, he averaged 20.2 points and 15.2 rebounds per game, and was selected as an All-Star. In his final year at Minneapolis, he averaged 26.1 points, 12.5 rebounds per game, 4.4 assists and 37.6 percent from outside the three-point line, and was considered The Perfect Interior Partner for LeBron James.
Later the story is known to everyone, for the dream of championship, Loew made a huge sacrifice and became the third leader of the Cavaliers. He is still selected as an All-Star twice in 2017 and 2018, but this is more regarded as the dividend of "playing next to LeBron" and a compliment to the Cavaliers' outstanding record, in most people's minds, the "Cavalier version" of Loew is no longer the front line of the league.
After James left in 2018, the Cavaliers signed a four-year, $120 million contract extension, apparently placing high hopes on him, and Loew himself was determined to prove himself again. But successive injuries have ruined all hopes and efforts, and in the past three years, Loew, who should have shown his talent, has stumbled through the years of continuous recovery, seeing the peak of being a basketball player pass a little bit in front of his eyes.
In the eyes of the world, Loew is tall, handsome, famous and profitable, and a natural winner, but, as he once wrote in the article published in the Players Forum: "Everyone is experiencing something unknown. ”
In fact, Loew has been experiencing serious mental health problems for many years, and the years since the LeBron era have obviously not helped him out of the shadows.
Almost every offseason, every trade deadline, the media is full of rumors about Loew's deal or buyout. In the usual theory, the knight who has decided to start all over again on the young route really has no reason to keep such a veteran who seems to have long been polished by age and injury, and Loew has no reason to let himself enter the countdown to a career, all of which are spent in the reconstruction with no end in sight.
But throughout the process, Loew has maintained a perfect professional attitude, doing everything he can to give silently and silently endure.
Last summer, Loew was selected for the Olympic team, but chose to quit before leaving. American Basketball Association President Crangillo said bluntly in an interview: "He is not in good health, and this (second selection) is a mistake." ”
Almost at the same time, there were media reports that the Cavaliers had communicated with Loew about playing time and role issues, and that he would be a substitute in the new season.
All indications are that Loew will officially enter the retirement stage, and it is difficult to expect him to make too many other contributions except for a little mental heat as a locker room leader.
No one expected that the 33-year-old "glass man" Loew would glow for the second spring without warning.
The Cavaliers "kept their promise" and created all possible playing time for the three young big men, Jarrett Allen, Evan Mobley and Laurie Markkanen, while Loew had to make way for the youngsters and lead the team's bench line-up with Rubio (who later became Rondo).
As of today, Loew has averaged only 22 minutes of playing time this season, but he can contribute 14.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists, which is incredibly efficient.
According to basketball-reference.com statistics, Loew's statistics per 36 minutes this season are 23.7 points, 12.3 rebounds and 3.5 assists, which is no different from the peak. In his last seven games, he's averaged 19 points, 9.6 rebounds and 2.6 assists, shooting a total of 25 three-pointers!
With Loew in his current form, he fully deserves more playing time, but it seems that the Cavaliers have no plans to adjust the rotation, and Loew has not caused any dissatisfaction at all. He has fully accepted his current role and is willing to do so.
The 33-year-old Loew, in this team with an average age of only 22 years old, is more like an "uncle", in fact, his teammates do call him that on weekdays, and the young All-Star guard Darius Garland directly calls him "Grandpa Love."
This group of talented but inexperienced lads need such a senior and elder brother very much. Loew, on the other hand, is happy to play such a role and help the younger generations grow.
"In my heart, K-Love is definitely a respectable big brother, he has been supporting me since I was chosen, he was the first person in the team to talk to me. It's really cool to have a Hall of Famer on the team who can always seek advice and advice from basketball or in life from him. Garland said.
During today's earth-shattering comeback against the Pacers in the fourth quarter, Loew shot three-pointers and scored nine points, but none of the shots made him more excited than after assisting after An Osman scored.
And that passionate chest-bumping celebration is only a "common shot" in this season's Cavaliers game. Loew is not pretending to be "positive energy", he is really happy from the heart. As he said on a previous JJ-Redick podcast: "Apart from the 2015-16 season, I really don't know what other year of my career I've had more fun than I have now. ”
Loew, 33, may never be selected as an All-Star again, but that doesn't stop him from loudly encouraging teammate Aaron who lost the All-Star bench in his last game to beat the Hornets: "You**** are all-Stars!" ”
Although in that game, Loew himself contributed 25 points and 9 rebounds, and fouled his opponent after grabbing a rebound in the last second, killing the game with a steady two-free shot.
After winning the Pacers today, the Cavaliers' record of 33 wins and 21 losses is only one win away from the Heat in the East, and they are the biggest dark horses of the season compared to the Grizzlies who won the playoffs last season.
"His healthy return and putting the team's success above his own is the key to where we are today." This is Cavaliers coach JB Bixtaff's most pertinent assessment of Kevin Loew.
It's also one of the NBA's most moving stories this season.