Erik Spoelstra: Hassan Whiteside Narratives 'Unfair' to Heat C

Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said Friday that center Hassan Whiteside received "unfair" treatment during the 2017-18 NBA season.

Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press provided comments from Spoelstra, who revealed Whiteside dealt with injuries throughout the campaign.

"The narrative and the storylines that will be out there, I do think they're unfair about Hassan right now," he said.

In early April, Whiteside spoke out about his lack of usage in the fourth quarter as Spoelstra often utilized smaller lineups to match up with opponents.

"Man, it's annoying," he told reporters. "Why we matching up? We got one of the best centers in the league. Why we matching up? A lot of teams don't have a good center. They're going to use their strength. It's bulls--t. It's really bulls--t, man. There's a lot of teams that could use a center. S--t. That's bulls--t."

Tom D'Angelo of the Palm Beach Post ripped the post player after he struggled in Game 1 of the team's first-round playoff series against the Philadelphia 76ers, which it eventually lost in five games.

"You see, games like Saturday's is when Whiteside usually blames everybody else for his failures," D'Angelo wrote. "When at times he would justify whatever numbers he's put up by citing a lack of minutes or even once saying he did his job during a Heat loss."

Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported Wednesday the Heat are "expected to explore a Whiteside trade" during the offseason.

Spoelstra's comments Friday are seemingly an effort to corral the situation, which has started to spiral out of control in recent weeks.

Whether Whiteside is still a member of the Heat when next season begins is a major question mark, though.