Cleveland Cavaliers trade rumors 2016: To trade Kevin Love for Sixers' Nerlens Noel?

National Basketball Association (NBA) power forward Kevin Love has been the subject of criticisms and even ridicule despite winning this year's championship title with Cleveland Cavaliers against Golden State Warriors. Following a dismal performance throughout the previous season, Love's future with the Cavs remains bleak.

The Cavaliers' firepower lies in the effectiveness of its offensive trio which consists of LeBron James, Kyrie Irving and Love. However, Love has long been perceived as the weakest link in the chain. As Cleveland aims for another championship run next season, the team is likely to find an even stronger rival in Golden State, especially with Kevin Durant's addition to the Warriors' roster. This recent offseason development demands an equally robust response from the Cavs.

Basketball pundits argue that to counter Golden State's strength build-up, the James-led team should acquire a defensive talent in its lineup. Some analysts observe that Love's forward potential was already spent during the finals. To beef up their second championship bid next year, some reports indicate that the Cavs is talking with the Sixers to acquire center Nerlens Noel, the Morning Ledger reported.

Despite lacking Love's offensive talent, Noel compensates with his defensive capabilities. In the past two seasons, he recorded a stellar average of 1.7 blocks and 1.8 steals per game. His big man talent is deemed as a valuable addition to Cleveland's need for hustle power.

Philadelphia 76ers, on the other hand, needs a lot of offensive boost and scoring firepower. Love could make a good lineup rebuild should the trade pushes through. As the fifth overall pick in the 2008 Draft, the former UCLA big man has been chosen to become part of the NBA All-Star team three times with an average of 26 points throughout his NBA career. He also posted a remarkable 15.2 rebounds per contest in the 2010–11 season, the Inquistr reported. However, his role seemed to have diminished since signing up for the Cavaliers with an average of 16.0 points and 9.9 rebounds in the last season.

The rumored Cavs-Sixers trade deal is just one of the countless possibilities happening in the offseason. Love is also linked to Cleveland's trade deal with Atlanta Hawk for Paul Millsap.