Miami Heat big man Kevin Love has long championed mental health awareness. He’s been publicly outspoken about mental health issues that he’s dealt with over the years, including anxiety and depression.
He also established the Kevin Love Fund to “inspire people to live their healthiest lives by creating equity between mental and physical health.”
Love’s courage to speak up about his mental health and willingness to help those in need have had ripple effects on athletes outside of the NBA, too. NFL offensive tackle Chris Hubbard, who last played in the NFL with the New York Giants in the 2024 season, gave Love a lot of credit for being vocal about the issue.
“I look up to him,” Hubbard told Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson, via Dolphin Nation.
“Just because we play a professional sport doesn’t mean we don’t have problems. Kevin being vocal helped all of us.”
Hubbard has become a mental health advocate himself and aims to change the fact that so many people keep their struggles to themselves.
Love and Hubbard both played for professional sports teams based in Cleveland at one point in time. Hubbard was a member of the Cleveland Browns for five seasons from the 2018 campaign through the 2022 season, and Love played for the Cleveland Cavaliers for eight-plus seasons and helped the franchise win its first title in 2016.
While Love is under contract now as a member of the Heat, Hubbard is still looking for a new home in the NFL after he logged eight appearances and three starts with the Giants last season. It’s reasonable to question whether or not Hubbard will get another chance to play in the league, though, as he’s getting up there in age at 34 years old and has played 11 NFL seasons now.
He did tell Robinson that teams are interested in him, a good sign for his chances of landing another job in the league.
Love should be proud of the fact that he has helped to normalize the topic of mental health among professional athletes. He’s positively impacted plenty of lives outside of his own by speaking out, and hopefully he can make a positive impact on the court as well in the 2025-26 NBA campaign.
The 36-year-old was limited to just 23 games played and nine starts in his second full season playing for the Heat and his third season with the team overall.