Despite the Miami Heat’s modest and somewhat unexpected success last season, the organization and its franchise center Hassan Whiteside didn’t leave things on a particularly positive note. Whiteside had been quibbling about his role and his playing time on and off for months before the Heat got ousted in the first round against the Sixers, which eventually led the organization to hit him with a hefty fine.
Team president Pat Riley finally had enough of it and even went so far as to publicly chastise Whiteside for being physically and mentally unprepared, then later insinuating to the press that he was reconsidering his future in Miami. Riley likely discovered that there wasn’t much of a market for Whiteside, so he’s since changed his tune and has recommitted to making the relationship work.
Riles, however, stood firm in his recent comments that the onus is on Whiteside to approach this coming season with the right attitude about how he can best contribute to the team. Now, after what’s been characterized as a lengthy meeting between the two sides, Whiteside appears ready to fall in line, and he also believes that he’ll be in a much better position to succeed now that he’s had time to fully recover from nagging injuries that he believes hampered his effectiveness last season.
Via Shandel Richardson of The Sun Sentinel:
“We had a great talk,” Whiteside said. “I just think it’s trust on both sides. I think that’s the biggest thing … It was about a four-hour meeting. It was a lot about life. It was two hours basketball, two hours life. It was a good meeting.”
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“I think the biggest thing is I just want to be out there,” Whiteside said. “It wasn’t about nothing else. I just wanted to be out there as much as possible. I think [I’ll play more] because I’ll be healthy. Last year, I wasn’t healthy.”
Whiteside found himself over-matched against Joel Embiid in the playoffs last spring and was regularly in foul trouble and/or unable to matchup against the Sixers’ small-ball lineups. Riley now wants Whiteside to assume a role similar to Clint Capela in Houston, in which he focuses on being a roll-man, rebounder, and shot-blocker.
It remains to be seen whether he’ll be content with that role, especially since he’s spent at least part of the summer trying to add some long-range shooting to his game. But for now, he and the Heat appear to be on the same page.
