The Heat and big man Kevin Love have agreed to a new deal, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). Love will sign a two-year contract worth over $8MM, sources tell Charania. The agreement doesn’t include an option year, tweets Ira Winderman of The South Florida Sun Sentinel.
A minimum-salary contract for Love would be worth in the neighborhood of $7MM, so it sounds like Miami is going a little higher than that to bring him back.
Love, 35, initially joined the Heat on the buyout market during the second half of the 2022/23 season and played a key role on the team that made the NBA Finals that spring. He re-signed with Miami a year ago and averaged 8.8 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 16.8 minutes per game across 55 appearances (five starts) in 2023/24.
Love held a player option for the 2024/25 season that he decided to turn down on Saturday. That option was worth just north of $4MM, so it appears he’ll be back for around the same price, with an extra year tacked onto his new contract.
Love will provide depth in a frontcourt headed up by star center Bam Adebayo. Big man Thomas Bryant is an unrestricted free agent and Orlando Robinson has a non-guaranteed salary for 2024/25, but the Heat added a center in the draft by selecting Kel’el Ware out of Indiana.