When it comes to competitive spirit, there's no Love lost

Two summers ago, the 6-10, 250-pound center from Lake Oswego, Ore., asked his father to call ABCD camp director Sonny Vaccaro. He requested an invitation to Vaccaro's camp -- with one proviso.

''Until then, I had never heard of the kid,'' Vaccaro recalled. ''If he was invited, he said he wanted to be sure that he'd be able to play against Greg Oden, who was the biggest name in the country.''

At one point, Love had played in all Nike-sponsored events and never had competed against Oden or Derrick Caracter or Michael Beasley, who is rated among the top five seniors in the nation this season.

''Nike had a lot of good players, but ABCD had the best players that year,'' Love said. ''I'm a competitive kid at heart. I wanted to go to ABCD to compete against the best. It would be my only chance to play against Oden before the college or pro levels. I wanted to prove myself against Oden and see how much I had to improve my game.''

That was the launching of Love's national reputation. He played against Oden three times, including the ABCD all-star game and later at the Big-Time tournament in Las Vegas, and held his own. From then on, Love became a priority for dozens of major college recruiters.

Now Love wants to showcase his talent on a national stage. The consensus choice as the No. 1 player in the nation, he has committed to UCLA, choosing the Bruins over North Carolina. And he will try to impress more critics in the annual Roundball Classic on Tuesday at the United Center.

How good is Love? He constantly draws comparisons to other big men. It has been said that he has the post moves of Elton Brand and the three-point stroke of Dirk Nowitzki. Vaccaro said Love is the best outlet passer he has seen since Wes Unseld. UCLA coach Ben Howland compares him to Bill Walton.

''He will be talked about next year as much as [Texas freshman sensation] Kevin Durant is talked about this year,'' said recruiting analyst Bob Gibbons of All-Star Sports. ''He is better than [North Carolina's] Tyler Hansbrough and [former North Carolina star] Sean May coming out of high school.''

Vaccaro, who has been evaluating high school talent since the 1960s, predicts Love will be an all-pro player some day.

''He has the best court sense and best release sense I've ever seen from a big man. He is a great team player, a complete player, clearly the best big man in the country.''

Passing is his forte, what separates him from others.

''I've worked on every aspect of my game, but passing comes the most natural,'' he said. ''It's something I've been blessed with, being able to see things that other players might not be able to see. It's really an instinctive thing.''

After growing 6 inches between eighth grade and his freshman year, Love began to work hard to improve his skills and fundamentals and overcome his shortcomings. He toned his body, strengthened his knees and gained muscle. He began to find ways to become more competitive.

''He was a kid from the Northwest,'' Vaccaro said. ''I think he always felt being in the Portland area prevented him from getting a reputation at national camps. He wasn't from Los Angeles, New York or Chicago. So he accepted challenges. And he played as if tomorrow's game would be his last.''

He got good advice from his father, too. Stan Love was a great player at Oregon who played four years with the NBA Baltimore Bullets.

''Be gracious to people when you step off the basketball court. But when you're on the court, be the meanest dude possible,'' he told his son.

''What kind of a player am I?'' Kevin said. ''I won't win any dunk competition with showtime points. People won't see drop-dead athleticism. I'm a team-first player who has all-around skills and can pass the ball. I like to get all my teammates involved. Most of all, I like to win.''

When Vaccaro and Howland watched Love's team play highly rated Santa Ana Mater Dei at UCLA's Pauley Pavilion, they couldn't believe what they saw. After observing the warmups, Howland said Love's team couldn't stay within 20 points. But Love had 37 points, 19 rebounds, eight assists and nine blocks as Lake Oswego won.

''Of all the great performances I have seen, in a team concept, he was the best singular player of all,'' Vaccaro said. ''None of his other nine teammates will play in Division I. And Mater Dei has six or seven Division I players. You had to see it to believe it. It's a story to be told.''