NBA All-Star Kevin Love honored for mental health advocacy

Published Dec. 2, 2021 9:51 a.m. ET

Associated Press

BOSTON (AP) — Kevin Love knows the euphoria of sinking a three-pointer just before the buzzer. But the five-time NBA All-Star has had plenty of lows to offset those highs.

“There are days when I don’t want to get out of bed. That’s just the truth,” the Cleveland Cavaliers power forward wrote in 2018 about his lifelong struggles with depression and low self-worth.

On Thursday, the Boston-based Ruderman Family Foundation honored Love with its annual Morton E. Ruderman Award in Inclusion

“Love has repeatedly taken steps to eradicate the mental health stigma by sharing stories of his struggles with depression, anxiety, and other challenges,” the foundation said in a statement. He has also established the Kevin Love Fund, with an ambitious goal of helping more than 1 billion people over a five-year period.

Last year, his fund teamed up with the University of California, Los Angeles, and established the Kevin Love Fund Chair in UCLA’s psychology department to diagnose, prevent, treat and destigmatize anxiety and depression.

Love, 33, won an NBA championship with the Cavaliers in 2016 and was a member of the gold medal-winning U.S. national team at the 2010 FIBA World Championship and the 2012 London Olympics.

He's repeatedly taken steps to eradicate the mental health stigma by sharing stories of his struggles with depression, anxiety and other challenges. In

The struggle continues: In April,

“When I first spoke out about my mental health struggles, it transformed my life,” Love said Thursday.

“Over the past few years, athletes around the world have shown us incredible courage by shining a light on the mental health toll that comes with extreme pressure. In doing so, they helped kick-start a cultural shift around mental wellness," he said.

Jay Ruderman, president of the Ruderman Family Foundation, said Love was chosen for his “instrumental role in destigmatizing mental health and bringing this long-overdue conversation out in the open.”

“He has served as a high-profile role model for countless people facing mental health challenges, who can now use his courage and determination as a guiding light," Ruderman said.

The award, now in its eighth year, was named after Morton E. Ruderman, a founder of the Ruderman Family Foundation. Past recipients include