I have tried to explain my position on this matter. It is what it is, and folks are going to disagree and that's OK. I do not want to eliminate all flexibility for the team going forward by taking on the third max contract.
Of course, Love is the better overall player, but a team is the sum of its parts. The Cavs have sufficient 3-pt shooting and scoring, with or without Love, and his defensive rebounding (his greatest value in my opinion) is a skill that can be replaced at much lower cost. His playmaking ability is a skill that may never be used to its full capability by this team lead by ball-dominant Lebron James and Kyrie Irving.
I value defense in construction of potential championship teams. It is the defense that has made the difference in making this team a contender. When I see the Cavs retain Thompson, Shumpert, and Mozgov (or superior players) after they have signed Love to the max, then I will be satisfied. Not before.
Signing Love to the max and losing the skills brought by the above players will be a massive failure IMO, especially due to the contract afforded to a player we should never have traded what we did for himin the first place unless he was under a long-term contract.
As Cavs' fans continue to believe there is no way Love would leave of his own accord, nearly every national media source says the exact opposite. The butthurt if this guy walks is going to be epic. For the fans sake, I truly hope that does not happen, and for my sake, I hope we get the opt-in.
Soon, we will see.