Monday night represented the second time in four games that Miami big man Hassan Whiteside found himself ejected from a game for an unnecessary cheap shot. On Tuesday, the NBA added to his troubles with a one-game suspension without pay for an “elbow to the back of Kelly Olynyk’s neck”.
With Whiteside only playing 22 minutes, the Heat (28-35) lost a game that was, on paper, a very winnable home matchup against the Celtics (26-36). And because of that, the Heat now find themselves on the outside looking in of the East playoff picture, currently a half-game back of No. 8 seed Charlotte.
Moreover, the game that Whiteside will now miss on Wednesday night? That comes against resurgent big man Brook Lopez and the Brooklyn Nets, who are just two games behind the Heat themselves.
It stands to reason that Whiteside’s immature actions might bother a veteran Miami locker room, and franchise icon Dwyane Wade spoke out about it to reporters when asked if he was disappointed.
“Very,” Wade said. “We all are. As a Heat fan you are. In this locker room we are. Everybody. He’s gonna have to learn and he’s gonna learn the hard way. He’s doing it his own way. Hopefully he changes his mentality pretty quick.”
The conversation continued, via Joe Goodman of the Miami Herald:
“He’s had enough veteran advice. There comes a time where you have to do it yourself. There’s only so many words people can continue to say to you. You gotta do it. Not for you, you got to do it for the other guys you see in here sacrificing — that you see out there playing hurt and all the things you see going on. You’re part of a team. You’re part of an organization.
“We all have our moments, selfish moments, but you can’t continue to keep having them because you got to be reliable, and you got to be able to be counted on. And right now, if he continues to act that way, then he’s not reliable.”
Whiteside remains an enormous conundrum for the Heat. With averages of 10.9 points (on 62.5% shooting), 9.8 rebounds and 2.4 blocks in just 22 minutes per game, he’s shown flashes of being one of the best centers in basketball. His PER is an astounding 27.2.
But the maturity issues that kept him out of the NBA for a considerable amount of time seem to have resurfaced, with Wednesday representing the third time in Whiteside’s last five games that his contributions will be limited — this time entirely — due to disciplinary actions.
If that plays a key role in Miami missing the playoffs, and an icon like Wade holds him responsible — it’s fair to wonder if Whiteside’s latest chance might also go by the wayside, just like so many before.
FORMER NBA EXEC SEES WESTBROOK’S HOT STRETCH ENABLING DURANT TRADE
Former NBA executive Tom Penn believes Russell Westbrook’s strong performances of late without Kevin Durant could make it more likely for the Thunder to trade Durant next season.
Penn, now an analyst at ESPN, says he thinks the burst from Westbrook makes it “much more likely” that Durant ultimately gets traded, particularly if Durant doesn’t give early indications that he plans to stay in Oklahoma City in his July 2016 free agency.
“I think this burst from Westbrook makes it much more likely that Durant ultimately gets traded next year. … Sam Presti has proven that he does not ever want to lose anybody for nothing. So he traded James Harden a year early to avoid a potential luxury tax problem a year later.
“The Kevin Durant drumbeat next year is going to be so loud because he will not commit early to Oklahoma City contractually because the rules are against that. He can’t get the same contract if he signs early as if he just goes to free agency and resigns.
So if Sam Presti doesn’t get that commitment, he’ll look to to trade Kevin Durant. And looking at the performance of Westbrook and the team around Westbrook will make it easier for him to do that potentially.”
Penn spent four seasons with the Portland Trail Blazers from 2007 through 2010 as vice president of basketball operations and assistant general manager.
It’s an interesting theory, but the analogy to Harden’s situation feels misguided. When the Thunder traded Harden, they did so knowing they still had two of the league’s top 10 players (Durant and Westbrook) and the ability to contend for championships. To that point, they’ve consistently held in the mix near the top of the Western Conference until this injury-riddled season.
With Westbrook and not Durant, the Thunder are simply not contenders. Even with Westbrook putting up goofy numbers of late, they’re just 3-3 in the last six games he’s played. So trading Durant, without getting a comparably-dominant player in return, would essentially equate to Presti and Oklahoma City punting on their championship window for the time being and rebuilding around Westbrook.
It’s not implausible for the Thunder to eventually trade Durant, especially if he goes the Kevin Love route and publicly declares that he’s intent on leaving Oklahoma City after his contract expires following the 2015-16 season. But Westbrook’s recent hot stretch shouldn’t be a major factor.
The bottom line is that the Thunder aren’t contenders without Durant, and there’s no reason for them to even consider moving him — especially given their ability to offer an additional $30 million in guaranteed money in free agency — unless Durant forcefully leverages his free agency against them. In other words, Durant holds the cards himself, just as he always has and just as superstars always do.
OTHER NEWS FROM AROUND THE NBA
Despite citing fatigue as a reason behind his sub-par season and slumping numbers, Portland forward Nicolas Batum will again compete for the France national team this summer.
The French are defending their EuroBasket Championship on native soil in August, and Batum told Joe Freeman of The Oregonian that he’s playing.
“I have to fight for my country,” Batum said.
Batum helped lead France to a bronze medal last summer in FIBA World Cup play, but his performance this season has suffered. After scoring 13 points on 45.6% shooting and grabbing 7.5 rebounds per game last year, his numbers in 2014-15 have dipped to 9.5 points (on 39.6% FG) and 5.6 rebounds per game, despite almost identical minutes.
Besides fatigue, Batum has also undergone platelet-rich plasma injections in his knee and played through a torn ligament in his right wrist.
It’s noble for Batum to continue to represent his country, especially since he’s at an age (26) at which many players start to withdraw from non-NBA activities in an effort to conserve energy.
On the other hand, the Blazers are paying him over $11 million per year until his contract expires after the 2015-16 season. So if excessive non-NBA play is a contributing factor to his decline on the court, it stands to reason that many around the team might not be pleased with his decision to continue to play.
As recently as Friday, No. 3 pick Joel Embiid was in workout clothes and throwing down between-the-legs dunks when exiting the court with his Philadelphia 76ers after pregame workouts.
This week, Embiid is back in a walking boot after suffering a minor setback to his previously-broken right foot, which he’s been rehabilitating for roughly a year.
From Tom Moore of Calkins Media:
Rookie center Joel Embiid experienced a “minor setback” during the rehab of the stress fracture in his right foot, according to an NBA source.
Some folks saw Embiid in public Sunday wearing a protective boot, which he apparently hadn’t sported in weeks, on the foot.
Following Friday’s pregame dunk, coach Brett Brown said he would “recommend strongly” that Embiid refrain from a repeat performance. Given the latest news, it doesn’t seem like Embiid will be able to do it for some time, even if he wanted to.
Brown told reporters Tuesday that people “shouldn’t overreact” to the boot, adding that some soreness is to be expected with Embiid’s recovery process.
But considering the long list of NBA big men with persistent foot problems like Yao Ming and Bill Walton, it’s certainly a concern worth monitoring going forward. Embiid seems to be the top building block the Sixers have after back-to-back years of a total rebuild, and anything that might ultimately prevent him from becoming a star would be devastating for GM Sam Hinkie and his organization.
Ben DuBose is a veteran sports reporter who has followed the Houston Rockets and the NBA since Hakeem Olajuwon was Akeem Olajuwon. He writes for both SheridanHoops and ClutchFans, an independent Rockets blog. You can follow him on Twitter.