LeBron James gave strong, meaningful words of encouragement to Kevin Love

We all knew LeBron James was the on-court leader of the Cleveland Cavaliers, but with these words, he proved to be the ideal off-court presence as well.

According to Complex via an interview with Carson Daly, LeBron James and Kevin Love exchanged a few short yet powerful words following Love’s articles in the Player’s Tribune.

"“It was a special moment for me because we [Love and James] sat towards the end of the bus,” Love shares in a new interview with Carson Daly. “He kind of said, ‘hey, do you have a moment,’ he stopped me…shook my hand, looked me in my eye and said, ‘You helped a lot of people today. It’s important.’ That was super powerful for me because not only is he the best athlete in the world, the best basketball player in the world but his influence and having my back with that was super important to me.”"

Love gained respect and admiration all over the league for sharing what other might have held in.

His mental health was important to his teammates, the fans that backed the franchise, and players all around the league that found the strength to reach out about the impact of mental health.

It was actually a few days prior to Love’s article being released that Raptors All-Star DeMar DeRozan opened up about his struggle with mental illness. Both Eastern Conference All-Stars, the two were highly praised for their strength and bringing light to an often under talked about subject.

For Love, he was just offered and accepted a four-year, $120 million extension. With one year left on his previous contract, Love will be in Cleveland for the next five years, barring any future trade.

His teammate of four years, LeBron James, is now in Los Angeles. James signed a ginormous four-year contract with the Lakers this offseason, a signing which shocked the entire NBA world.

However, Love might one day have to go through exactly what DeRozan just went through. DeRozan was praised in Toronto. He took a deal that was less than a max contract just to allow his team to acquire different assets to improve.

Love, whose last season is less than a max, would be an ideal trade option for teams looking to improve although it seems his allegiance is to Cleveland. Just like DeRozan, Love has a passion for Cleveland and is the last remaining player from the Cavs original Big 3.

All that to say, while the spotlight may be off Cleveland, the roller coast of emotions that has been Kevin Love’s career might not be over and it’s a great thing to see superstar LeBron James supporting his teammate in all facets that come with being a star athlete.