The Miami Heat need to move on from Hassan Whiteside

After another public tirade, the time has come for the Miami Heat and Hassan Whiteside to part ways.

Let’s put aside for a second the optics of the entire Hassan Whiteside situation; that airing grievances through the media is perhaps the worst strategy for effectively solving a problem, particularly with a notoriously tight-lipped organization like the Miami Heat.

Disregard also for a moment how Whiteside has treated the relationship with a team that invested in him two years ago during one of the most pivotal offseasons in the franchise’s history; an offseason that cost them the services of franchise pillar Dwyane Wade.

Eliminate all external, emotional responses and you’ll still be left with the reality now facing the Heat. They need to move on from Whiteside, and all of these extracurricular events only further enflame the practical merit for divorce.

Whiteside’s comments following a tough overtime loss to the Brooklyn Nets, where he did not see the floor in the fourth quarter or overtime, shouldn’t have surprised anyone. This is something that has been brewing for the last 77 games and has shown its face to lesser degrees a number of times.

There were the public comments from head coach Erik Spoelstra in late January, urging the center to expand his offensive game.

"“Hey, welcome to this league. This league isn’t easy,” Spoelstra told reporters after a loss to the Houston Rockets where Whiteside turned the ball over seven times. “He has to be absolutely committed in practice and player development on working on those [offensive] reads like a quarterback would.”"

Just a couple of weeks after that, Whiteside delivered his most revealing quotes of the year (up until Saturday night). Whiteside called his decrease in minutes “frustrating,” adding that all he can do is “keep a positive attitude.”

"“That’s what the GM wanted,” he said. “[President] Pat Riley drafted a center [Bam Adebayo]. Kelly Olynyk, they gave him a big contract. That’s what they wanted – they wanted more people in the frontcourt.”"

That led to a meeting between Whiteside and Spoelstra shortly after the All-Star break in February, where the two patched up any miscommunication they were having.

Whiteside went on to play some of his most inspired basketball of the season.