Therapist Helped Kevin Love Become Better Rebounder
Therapy is one of the reasons why the Cavs did well this season.
Kevin Love is a beast of a basketball player and is a tough manly man (I mean, the guy looks like a lumberjack).
He plays a powerful game, where he’s always doing the dirty work to fight for rebounds and is constantly assisting teammates with these explosive full-court outlet passes.
But the reason why he’s able to do what he does so well is that he constantly talks to the Cleveland Cavaliers’ therapist, Mayur Pandya, and works on his mental health.
Love believes that going to therapy has helped him improve his mental performance, and thus has helped him improve his basketball skills. He also credits therapy for the Cavaliers' success this season.
Via Insider:
“Boosting mental performance and resilience is the reason we are here today,” Love said, “We’re all much better for it and having these conversations, and having Dr. Pandya taking the time, and for the organization understanding that it’s important.”
NBA players have to deal with a lot as professional athletes.
They have to constantly fight their self-doubt and insecurities, while also having to brush off the harsh criticisms from fans, the media, and analysts who perpetuate and trigger their negative self-belief.
And that’s just the stuff they have to deal with at work. They also have to deal with personal things in their lives as well.
Players are always having to deal with something internally.
And this is why therapy has helped so many players. It allows them to talk to someone about their feelings and struggles and to receive solutions for them.
“Everybody has their own journey and mental-health journey, but we’re not meant to go through this alone,” Love said. “Having diversity within our group, how we grew up, where we were born, socioeconomic status, wherever we may be, I think there’s a lot of problem-solving there.”
Final Thoughts
The Cavaliers came short this season, as they couldn’t get through the Play-In tournament. This partly had to do with injuries, but mainly it was a lack of experience.
However, their accomplishments far surpassed what many thought they could do and I’m positive that their team will be significantly better in the next campaign.