SI names Kevin Love the NBA's seventh best player

Sports Illustrated today finished up its rankings of the top 100 players in the NBA and Cleveland Cavaliers forward Kevin Love was named the seventh best player in the NBA. Last year, SI made listed love as the 13th best player in the NBA. SI's Rob Mahoney wrote the following about Love:

To blame Love for what became of the Timberwolves last season is to miss the point entirely. During Love's time on the floor, Minnesota registered the net rating of a top-10 team. It was when Love sat that the Wolves so often fell to pieces.

Mahoney later notes that Love's game should translate very well to the new-look Cavaliers in David Blatt's offense. He also notes that while Love was also lazy on defense at times with the Minnesota Timberwolves, that should improve with the Cavaliers and he has shown flashes of playing disciplined defense with Team USA. Basically, Mahoney asserts that Love is really good and is going to get better overall with his new team.

And with Kyrie Irving coming in at No. 21 and LeBron James coming in at No. 1, the Cavaliers theoretically have three of the best 25 players in the league right now,  all of which are still in, or are approaching, their primes.