Kevin Love to play for injured Yao Ming in NBA All-Star game
Luck has running out lately for the 7’6” athlete Yao Ming, who is out this season due to a stress fracture in his left ankle.
The same luck turned Kevin Love into a gleeful young happy heart when it was announced that he will replace the 30 year old Yao. NBA’s commissioner David Stern selected Love as a replacement for the injured Houston Rockets center on Friday night, 4
February.
The 22 year old player plays for Minnesota Timberwolves as a power forward/ center. He will be appearing in the NBA All-Star game for the very first time after starting his career with the NBA in 2008. This is his 3rd year as a professional basketball
player and he will be the first player to appear from the Timberwolves after Kevin Garnett, who appeared in 2007.
The UCLA graduate was momentarily shocked, when Kurt Rambis, the Wolves’ head coach delivered him the news. The entire team was present when the announcement was made and Love at first thought it was just a joke.
It was however, the truth. The player is undoubtedly one of the most talented basketball players present in NBA. He has recorded 34 straight double-doubles. The player is NBA’s top rebounder and scored a whopping 20 along with 15 rebounds on a 43.9 shooting
from the field in Friday’s loss to Toronto Raptors.
It has not yet been decided by Gregg Popovich, the West coach of NBA’s West line, that who will open the 20 February All-Star game for Yao.
The player was definitely hurt when the All-Star reserves were announced on Thursday night, it was apparent when he later said, “I truly and firmly believe in my heart that, solely on play alone, I should have been in there”.
His charisma this season did come to fruition when he was announced as the replacement on Friday. Although, his team is not that good, but the ace himself has been without any doubt one of the most fabulous players this season.
The rebounding machine has been averaging 21 points per game and posting a whopping 23.3 rebounding percentage. Love is one star, who deserves, to be in the NBA-All Star game.
Yao has been selected by his devotees for the eighth time in nine seasons. This time too, despite appearing for just six games, Yao got selected but obviously he won’t be able to play the All-Star game.
The Chinese player will not even be able to attend the game like other injured players are expected to, because he will not be present at Los Angeles due to his rehabilitation following the surgery.
Let’s wish Love the best of skills just in case he runs out of luck and hope that he does appear in the NBA All-Star game.
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