Cleveland Cavaliers veteran forward Kevin Love is savoring this season, partly due to a shift in role from starter to key bench piece.
"It's the most fun I've had since the (championship) '15-16 season," Love told Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix.
The 43-36 Cavaliers, who face the Orlando Magic on Tuesday, need one more victory to double their win total from last season. It's Cleveland's first winning campaign without LeBron James on the roster since 1998 and the first time the Cavs have broken 22 wins since James signed with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2018.
"We were expected to win, maybe in the mid-to-low, maybe high 20s this year," Love said. "It's been a lot of fun."
In 71 games, Love is averaging 13.4 points and 7.1 rebounds while shooting 38% from three, making 2.5 per game. He is a leading candidate for Sixth Man of the Year.
The 33-year-old credited his late-career renaissance partly to head coach J.B. Bickerstaff's trust in him.
"J.B., he's like, 'I want you to play free. You have the green light.' … So for me, there was no pushback," Love said.
He added, "Coming off the bench, I think it can add a lot of time to my career. I feel great. My body feels great. Mentally I feel great. In this league, if you can rebound and you can shoot, you can basically play for as long as you want."
Cleveland will be locked into the play-in bracket if the Toronto Raptors beat the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday. The Cavs last appeared in the postseason in 2018, losing the championship to the Golden State Warriors.
