Center
1. Hassan Whiteside
2. Amar’e Stoudemire
3. Chris Andersen
Oct 17, 2015; Houston, TX, USA; Miami Heat center Hassan Whiteside (21) grabs a rebound as Houston Rockets center Joshua Smith (R) defends during the second half at Toyota Center. The Heat won 105-100. Mandatory Credit: Soobum Im-USA TODAY Sports
We just saw the Cleveland Cavaliers pay Tristan Thompson $82 million dollars to be the cleanup guy. That’s what Whiteside will have to be for the Heat this season and, if he is, this team can go places.
Like Thompson, Whiteside can fix some poor shooting with offensive rebounds and putbacks. On defense, Whiteside can erase defensive mistakes with dominant rim protection.
If the Heat are going to make the Eastern Conference finals, it’s going to take an All-NBA type season from Whiteside. Which is enough to make me puke with both excitement and nervousness.
Between backups Stoudemire and Andersen, the Heat have the inverses of one another. Stoudemire the offensive contributor and Andersen the defensive specialist. Both are limited on other side of the ball. Stoudemire will be Miami’s default second center but, if Spo needs a rim protector when Whiteside is out, expect him to go with Andersen.***
***Especially in cases when Whiteside gets into foul trouble, which will be often. Andersen’s minutes could be directly related to how many early fouls Whiteside picks up.
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