‘Anything but a cliché player’

That’s what I was thinking to myself when I had to choose a Cleveland athlete for an intro post.

The city has no shortage of household names: Jose, LeBron, Jim Brown, Jesse Owens and James Harden (in some respects). Any of them would have been safe choices that everyone would instantly recognize.

But introducing myself felt too important to just go with what’s at the top of my head. So I thought for a second, and I picked Kevin Love. I thought that Love was a more respectable choice. He seemed like the name that would make people pause for a moment. I also remembered liking him during the Cavs' 2016 season.

A few hours later, I looked him up to make sure he wasn’t cancelled or anything like that, but that’s when I came across who Love really is.

First, I looked at the 2016 championship. One of the most iconic possessions in Cavs history. It wasn't his shot or a spotlight moment. Instead, it was a rebound. He had a deflected rebound in the 2016 NBA Finals that kept the ball alive at a moment when the Cavs' championship looked nonexistent.

I realized that Love's significance to his team’s first championship wasn't about individual stardom. It was about being in the right place at the right time, being engaged, and contributing to the team. Love represented the leadership side of winning. He carried himself with a presence and consciousness that doesn't make highlight reels but absolutely makes championships possible. That presence is widely valued here in BBYO as well.

Also, another layer to Love that pulled me in even deeper was that he became one of the first major athletes willing to speak openly and candidly about mental health struggles.

Generally, athletes are expected to be invulnerable, and Love broke that mold. He discussed his anxiety and the pressure of expectations, and he normalized those conversations in a space that hadn’t made room for them yet.

The biggest thing that I took away from my rabbit hole was that whether it be sports, BBYO, or beyond, every team needs a Kevin Love: someone who doesn’t just shoot for highlights, pushes the team forward in critical moments, and changes the narrative when it feels limiting.