A Miami Heat Player?
For a player who has taken this long to establish himself in the league, games such as this from Whiteside are incredibly frustrating. Granted, these have become far less frequent as his focus and ability to play within a team concept have grown leaps and bounds.
But the fact that these happen with a player who is yet to make an all-star game are quite befuddling. Following this loss to Orlando, head coach Erik Spoelstra’s noted:
"“It just shows you how tough this league is. Every single night, it’s a challenge. There are a lot of teams that are bunched up. We didn’t play near our best defensive game, really the last two games we didn’t really get to our identity.”"
When Whiteside was asked about his benching early in the first term, he responded:
"“He just took me out because the guy got a rebound. It went over my head. It happens, man. I lead the league in rebounds the last time I checked. So I know how to rebound. It just went over my head. We talked about it and I came back in and I led both teams in rebounds.”"
Further, Whiteside was queried about a late close-out which he failed to execute, leading to a three-pointer from Fournier. On top of noting that his direct opponent Vucevic shot 4-of-14 for the night, he added:
"“I call that good defense.”"
It’s great to hear players upfront and honest in post-game interviews. But these comments are a worry, considering Whiteside’s checkered background before excelling with the Heat.
Instead of owning up to some errors, he was essentially blaming others and implied that he’d done nothing wrong.
With this in mind, it’s been widely accepted that Heat president Pat Riley tends a to identify players that fit a certain mould. In his words, it’s a “Miami Heat player.” In essence, all the things Riley preaches – selflessness, work ethic, commitment, sacrifice.
Despite his significant improvement, Whiteside really doesn’t fit the mould that Riley looks for overall in a player. Yes, Riley gave him a $94 million contract this past offseason. But in doing this, Riley was well aware he was retaining a potentially very valuable asset. And hence, not letting Whiteside walk and getting nothing in return.
Of course it’s easy to nitpick at any player in any game setting for their shortcomings. But by now, Whiteside should know better. With the team pushing for the playoffs following a recent 13-game winning streak, every game from now is more critical than ever.
Next: Why the Heat didn't make a move at the trade deadline
However, when your highest-paid player puts in performances such as this, second-thoughts regarding Whiteside’s long-term suitability in Miami certainly spring to mind.
With the trade deadline come and gone and Whiteside still in South Beach, I wonder how much longer the Heat can stand performances like this before cashing in the Whiteside chip.