Prepare to be disappointed.
There is no “stepping up” on the defensive end for Kevin Love. He can’t make his arms longer. He can’t make his feet quicker, he can’t make his vertical leap higher.
What he is right now, is what he is period. He’s 29 years old. There is no magic switch for him to flip in the finals to become a good defender. Effort has nothing to do with it. He’s limited athletically on that end and always will be.
What he can/must do in the finals to give the Cavs a chance is give his A+ effort on the things he IS good at. He’s gotta make threes, draw free throws and rebound the hell out of the ball on the defensive glass.
Expecting some sort of rapid improvement on D isn’t realistic because it isn’t happening.