With their playoff campaign set to kick off on Sunday with a first-round matchup with the Indiana Pacers, the Cleveland Cavaliers are going into this postseason with a sense of deja vu.

It resembles 2010 when a second-round exit prompted the departure of LeBron James in free agency.

After returning to his hometown team in 2014, the King's future with the franchise is once again in doubt as he prepares to hit free agency this summer.

How the Cavs perform in the playoffs this year will go a long way to determining what decision the four-time MVP will make in July.

Kevin Love - who has played with James for the last four seasons and helped to bring Cleveland its first championship in 2016 - knows exactly what's at stake for the organisation heading into the postseason this year.

The topic of LeBron's free agency has rarely been mentioned within the team, but Love is aware of how it could impact them as they seek to make a fourth straight appearance in the NBA Finals.

"It definitely could," Love told ESPN on Friday. "But only one person knows what he's thinking and that's 'Bron. I think at the end of the day, we would love to have a long run, but that's going to be up to not only him but all of us.

"And you know I don't mean only the players, but the coaching staff and everybody. I mean, really getting on board and, you know, sticking to our schemes and playing great basketball.

"So I think it definitely could affect it, but you know that's, at least for me, out of sight, out of mind right now."

Love and James are two of the four remaining players from their championship-winning roster of two years ago.

When he made the decision to return to 'The Land' after a four-year stint with the Miami Heat, LBJ immediately reached out to the All-Star power forward to convince him to accept a trade from the Minnesota Timberwolves to the Cavaliers.

After four successful seasons together, Love knows this could be the last time he plays alongside the three-time champion.

"I think that's in the back of the mind," Love said. "I think it's always something that is potentially on the mind. But I feel the same way about myself. It could be my last run, too, so you just never know.

"The unknown is something that you try to just put out of your hands for a certain amount of time. But, just go out there and lose yourself in it and everything will fall where it needs to."

The 29-year-old has himself been involved in trade rumours throughout his time in Ohio and was reportedly close to being shipped to Indiana last summer in a deal to acquire Paul George.

But that never materialised and he's enjoyed another impressive campaign with the Cavs despite suffering multiple injuries.

For the second straight season, the Wine and Gold will face the Pacers in the opening round but reaching the finals will not be a foregone conclusion like it has been in recent years.

A failure to do so could seriously hurt their chances of keeping the league's best player on their books.

Listen HERE to the first episode of the new GiveMeSport NBA podcast, featuring former Cleveland Cavaliers General Manager David Griffin.

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