Former Heat Star Could Land With Eastern Conference Rival via Free Agency

Getty Hassan Whiteside #21 of the Miami Heat goes in for the dunk in the third quarter against the Philadelphia 76ers

The Miami Heat drastically changed the NBA career of Hassan Whiteside. After being drafted by the Sacramento Kings, in the second round of the 2010 NBA draft, the seven-foot center was out of the league. Whiteside found himself bouncing from the NBA Developmental League (now the G-League) to playing for a few teams in Lebanon and China, to playing in the Development League. But in 2014, the Heat gave Whiteside his chance back to the NBA. He was sent to the Heat’s D-League affiliate but only two days later was recalled, and in his first season in Miami, the center averaged a double-double in points and rebounds.

Whiteside continued to develop and get better on those Heat teams and ultimately became a star in South Beach. His best season he averaged an impressive 17.0 points, 14.1 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks per game. Whiteside became one of the proving points for how ‘Heat Culture’ can turn around a players career. Miami rewarded his development with a four-year $98 million contract. The Heat eventually traded Whiteside as part of a four-team deal that sent the center to the Portland Trail Blazers where he played two seasons before returning to Sacramento for a year and eventually joining the Utah Jazz. 

Now, Whiteside is a free agent and one of the best available veteran big men. He brings an unparalleled rim presence and rebounding that could benefit any NBA team. One NBA executive told Heavy.com that Whiteside could be on the Brooklyn Nets’ radar to finalize their roster. 

Nets May Approach Hassan Whiteside or Other Big Men

In a conversation with an unnamed Eastern Conference exec, Heavy’s Sean Deveney was given three big men that the Nets may look to as training camp approaches. 

“They need another big guy, but they’re not feeling a lot of pressure as far as filling that spot. There are veterans they can sign this month or even early next month—Dwight Howard would be the obvious one, maybe Hassan Whiteside. Cody Zeller is out there, too. They want to see what they have with Nic Claxton but they want some insurance there, too. And they’re going to play (Ben) Simmons there quite a bit in small-ball lineups. I’d expect them to keep 14 guys, keep one spot open,” The executive told Deveney. 

The Nets are well-known to be planning to try out a small-ball lineup if they bring back Irving and Durant and Ben Simmons, and his size, athletic ability, and most important his defense would anchor Brooklyn defensively and be a matchup nightmare with the Nets having a playmaking center alongside Durant in the frontcourt. With that considered, they may want more size off of the bench to split time in their rotation with their only true backup center Nic Claxton. Adding a big like Howard or Whiteside gives the Nets rim protection and strength on the glass and could be an excellent pickup. Zeller is also a serviceable big man for the Nets off the bench. 

Possible Heat Free Agent Targets

Those are three players that the Nets are targeting, but what about the Heat? Miami has been linked to free agents like Collin Sexton, Montrezl Harrell, Dennis Schroder, and even LaMarcus Aldridge. However, if Udonis Haslem decides to take the open invitation back to the Heat it would take up the last roster spot without the Heat having to pay the league’s luxury tax.