Cleveland Cavaliers power forward Kevin Love went down with an injury on Jan. 30 and has been out of action ever since. The injury was a fracture of the fifth metacarpal in his left hand, but Love was able to pass on having surgery and the timetable for his return was eight weeks. During his absence, Tristan Thompson reclaimed the starting center role and Cedric Osman moved into the starting role as power forward, although he splits time with Larry Nance Jr. The timetable for Kevin Love's return was the end of March -- so right before the NBA playoffs -- but there has been huge news concerning his return to the Cavs.

When is Kevin Love going to return to the Cavs?

Kevin Love had previously said that his rehabilitation from his injury was going well and he believed that he could return to the Cleveland Cavaliers sooner than team doctors had suggested. It now appears that his optimism might hold some water. According to ESPN, Love told reporter Dave McMenamin that he is hoping to be back well before the eight weeks are up -- sometime this month if things continue to progress.

The reason for Love's optimism is that he started shooting a little with his right hand and has been dribbling with his right hand as well. He said that he progressively moved to his left hand. With that out of the way, he moved his rehabilitation from the injury to catching the ball and then guiding it and shooting it around 12 to 15 feet.

He said that it feels good to do something other than run on a treadmill or ride his stationary bike.

What this means for the Cavs

After Kevin Love fell to injury, the Cleveland Cavaliers have made the huge NBA trade deadline moves to get younger, and more importantly, rid themselves of Isaiah Thomas -- the player who ripped Love for getting sick during a loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

While no one player has stepped up to replace the missing production that Kevin Love brings to the Cleveland Cavaliers, the entire team has had to step up and work together to replace his numbers. Cedi Osman is showing promise and Larry Nance Jr. is playing hard, but neither player can replace someone of the caliber of Love.

When Kevin Love returns, he will be able to step back into the starting lineup instantly and the Cleveland Cavaliers can play with a frontcourt that includes Tristan Thompson at center and Love at power forward or other lineups that could move Love to center and have Osman or Nance step in as forward. It means Love will make the Cavs very deep -- and if Love is to be believed, this could happen in a matter of weeks.