Under the old Collective Bargaining Agreement, a team could only give one of their young players a 5 year contract. This came to be know as the “designated player” once that player became a free agent the first time. That rule originally contributed to the Minnesota Timberwolves losing their then franchise player Kevin Love. The rule is being adjusted under the new collective bargaining agreement and it will help teams with young talent keep two of their designated first time free agents.
Hence its being named the “Kevin Love Rule”.
A team like the T-Wolves, who have 2 very young and very talented players in Karl-Anthony Towns and Andrew Wiggins, can benefit from this rule being changed. Back in 2011, the Wolves decided to use the “designated player” tag for Ricky Rubio over Kevin Love. He in turn rejected the four year deal they offered him. Love instead opted for a three year deal, with a fourth year option, which triggered the chain of events that led him to exiting Minnesota in 2014.
Fast forward to 2016, the Timberwolves were looking at the possibility of facing the same issue again. Forward Andrew Wiggins will become eligible for the tag next year. Budding superstar, Karl-Anthony Towns will be eligible the year after. By having the rule changed in the new CBA, they no longer have to worry about that choosing between the two.
This change will benefit other other teams with multiple talent such as the Jazz, Nuggets and Sixers moving forward.
