As Hassan Whiteside Auditions for a Max Contract, Wade & Bosh Offer Wise Advice
MIAMI — Each rebound, rejection and rim-rocking jam brings Hassan Whiteside one step closer to establishing himself as a top-shelf NBA center. But ample uncertainty still surrounds perhaps the biggest key to the Miami Heat's 2015-16 success.
He is undoubtedly making strides in several facets of the NBA game, including the cat-and-mouse maneuvering between professional athletes and media members.
He never forgets to credit his individual success to the help of his Miami Heat teammates. He answers questions about his offense by first pointing to the defensive end, sounding almost like an echo of his head coach, Erik Spoelstra. Whiteside speaks often on his growing comfort level with the NBA and improving hardwood IQ.
But his inexperience slips through every now and again, which should surprise no one since his career odometer still sits at just 74 games. During these moments, he'll speak without a filter, providing brief glimpses into a mind that once scared off scouts and still remains perplexing.
He says he keeps a running dialogue with referees, a practice put in place to help stay out of foul trouble. If he hears a whistle, he'll head to the official for clarification.
"I just try to ask the refs, 'What am I doing?' to [figure out] what do they think that I'm fouling, where I'm fouling at," Whiteside explained.
That act in itself doesn't raise red flags—in fact, it's a tremendous way to learn from one's mistakes—but the ensuing conversations might.
Or, rather, the way that Whiteside interprets the talks.
"I had a couple refs say they just missed the call, and it wasn't a foul. They made a mistake."
As for the other tips he's heard, those are either private or forgotten. The only one he shared was simple: Someone else messed up, not me. He provided a similar take on a goaltending call during a recent game, informing media members afterward he had instructed the official to "just go look at it on the film and let me know if it was a goaltend."
Refs have surely heard worse, and taking issue with a call has long been a part of NBA life. But given Whiteside's history, it's fair to wonder whether these are common complaints or the sign that something's a little off with his self-awareness.
This is the same player who, as a risk-reward draft prospect in 2010, compared himself to Dwight Howard and Hakeem Olajuwon, per ESPN Insider Chad Ford. Arrogance and immaturity were buzzwords in his predraft profiles back then, and they both surfaced again last season when Whiteside was ejected twice in the same week, first for tackling Alex Len and then for trucking Kelly Olynyk.
Before this season even started, the Heat were fielding questions about Whiteside's ability to keep himself in line. That alone felt newsworthy to Heat All-Star forward Chris Bosh.
"We can't, as a team, we can't have instances where people are asking us if we're under control," Bosh said. "That should always be a part of the game. We should be able to keep our emotions in check."
If this sounds like a tricky, volatile situation for the Heat, that's because it is. Further complicating the matter is Whiteside's expiring contract and impending unrestricted free agency. The same guy who was honing his skills at a YMCA as recently as last year could be inking a max contract next summer.
There are so many twists and turns this story could take, all of them equating to a mountain of risk for an aging Miami squad hoping to realize the faint championship hopes.
But here's the thing—Whiteside is worth it.
Easily.
He's the current league-leader in blocks with an astounding 4.0 per game. Opponents are shooting just 40.3 percent against him at the rim, the third-lowest mark among defenders facing at least eight such attempts per game. He's had three 20-point, 10-rebound efforts over his first seven appearances, including the season's first 20-point, 10-board, five-block outing.
If the campaign closed today, Whiteside would join Hall of Famers Hakeem Olajuwon, David Robinson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the only players to average at least 14 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks.
"He knows what he's capable of doing," Bosh said of Whiteside, via ESPN.com's Michael Wallace. "He's starting to figure out where his spots are. If he gets there, we're going to get him the ball, and he can take advantage of all of that stuff."
Those spots are mostly right around the rim, though Whiteside swears he has a "nice and sexy" pull-up jumper. Armed with a 7'7" wingspan and the strength to finish through contact, he's a beast around the basket. He's hit 27 of 30 shots at the rim this season (90 percent) and last year boasted a 76.1 percent conversion rate there.
His pick-and-roll chemistry with Dwyane Wade is good enough that it reminds the three-time champ of his days alongside Shaquille O'Neal and Alonzo Mourning.
"For him to know that I've done it before with those guys and this is the recipe for success, just follow the blueprint," Wade said. "No reason to change nothing up."
Whiteside still has plenty to improve inside the lines, but keeping things simple could help alleviate a lot of his issues.
Finding the right focus would prevent him drifting in and out of the activity. Halting his hunt for highlight blocks would stop any leaks from springing on Miami's interior. Passing out of traps could buy him extra breathing room. Feasting off lobs, dump-off passes and offensive boards alone would maximize his strengths and mask his limitations.
Without doing those things consistently, he's still dominating from an individual standpoint. But the next step is making his presence felt by the entire team. That's still a significant work in progress. To wit, the Heat have fared 7.3 points better per 100 possessions when he doesn't play this season.
He's talented enough to flip that figure around. But this is the first time he's shouldered expectations that aren't his alone.
"This is all new," Wade said. "This season is going to be a different experience than last year. Last year was just about playing basketball; it wasn't about competing for a championship. Us as captains and leaders of this team, we understand that we need Hassan. And we got to continue to stay on him."
The early returns on that investment are promising.
Whiteside has five games with two fouls or fewer and only one with more than three. He's had a few chippy encounters with opponents, but none that forced him off the floor. His playing time has jumped by nearly 25 percent, and his elite-level efficiency has nearly stayed the same (26.0 player efficiency rating, down from 26.2 last season).
"My teammates just find me, and I just finish it," Whiteside said. "They really just make me better."
It might sound cliched, but it's music to Miami's ears if he really means it.
An engaged, mature, team-first Whiteside could be a powerful force—even more potent than the one-man wrecking crew who's currently besting opposing bigs.
All quotes obtained firsthand, unless otherwise noted. Statistics used courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com and NBA.com.
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