"I was a bad teammate" - Kevin Love bore regret for years before making things right with Ricky Rubio

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"I was a bad teammate" - Kevin Love bore regret for years before making things right with Ricky Rubio

Julian Eschenbach · Basketball Network

Mon, Sep 21, 2026 ·

3 min read

Rubio's retirement post

Rubio's mental health struggles have been well documented. He's spoken about them himself. His retirement announcement in January 2024 was one of those moments.

In a post on X, La Pistola described a night he called one of the toughest of his life. July 30. His mind "went to a dark place," he wrote . The next day, Rubio added, he decided to end his professional career. What exactly happened? He kept that to himself out of respect for his family and himself. The 2009 lottery pick did note, however, that he was still working on his mental health.

Many people heard right there that Rubio was struggling. Love took something else from it, though. It pushed him to finally reach out to the 2019 FIBA World Cup MVP. Finally, because by his own admission, he had put it off for far too long. Long enough that it had really weighed on him.

Love's regret

Love's intention was to finally take responsibility. Not for anything he did while they were teammates with the Minnesota Timberwolves or later with the Cleveland Cavaliers . For what he didn't do.

"One of my biggest regrets … is that I wish I was a better teammate for him and other guys, but really for him, because he (Rubio) really cared," Love said . "I actually apologized. It had haunted me that I'd never said that."

When they both started out in Minnesota, Rubio was only 21 . He had dominated in Europe. But finding his footing in the NBA? That was no small task.

Love was just a couple of years older but already an established figure. He was seen as the franchise cornerstone. He had won MIP the season before. That year had also marked the first of his five All-Star nods.

The difference in their standing was stark. That said, Love should have been the one guiding the talented playmaker through it all. By Kevin's own account, he didn't do that to the extent he wanted to.

"I was selfish, angry, bitter, entitled, arrogant, I had bad habits. But more than anything, I was a bad teammate," the 2011 rebounding leader recounted plainly.

K-Love also made clear that, at that point, he simply hadn't had anybody show him the ropes. His dad, for instance, wasn't someone he could lean on in that regard. He couldn't give him any "awareness" of what giving to a team even meant in the first place.

Rubio himself could probably have used that earlier. Still, Love did come around. The 2016 NBA champion with the Cavs clearly showed it in the years that followed.

K-Love has long been seen as a valuable figure to have around in any locker room. It's a big part of why he's reportedly still drawing interest, even as his play declines. The 18-year NBA veteran just brings plenty beyond the hardwood.

This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Sep 21, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.