Hassan Whiteside (Photo : Reuters)
The NBA Trade rumors will erupt with Hassan Whiteside trade proposals since his security in Miami is now questionable.
The Heat will have to weigh its priorities this offseason and since Dwyane Wade will be a free agent again, there's no question he is at the top of that list, along with a serious pursuit of Kevin Durant.
The situation illustrated by the Sun-Sentinel's Ira Winderman paints the inevitable choice that Pat Riley needs to make.
"About the only way Whiteside could be locked up before free agency would be if the Heat were to trade him to a team that has ample salary-cap space. Bottom line: Whiteside will enter 2016 free agency as a player up for grabs to any team with the requisite salary-cap space."
Dallas fans at The Smoking Cuban believe it's better for the Heat to give up Whiteside in exchange for a very valuable asset.
The proposal might be hard to sell, considering that Whiteside has turned his reputation around from journeyman to possible franchise-building piece. But the Mavs fans still make an argument.
The proposal is to send Zaza Pachulia and Dwight Powell to the Mavericks along with the precious 2017 first round pick in exchange for Hassan Whiteside and Josh McRoberts.
The pros for Miami is that they will have a replacement center (Pachulia), gain more cap flexibility for a Durant chase (McRoberts 3 year deal becomes an expiring contract now) and Dwight Powell is considered by some to be a possible star (of course, that's still questionable).
The main selling point is still the 2017 first round draft pick. The 2017 class is predicted to be much better than 2016, with Thon Maker, Harry Giles, Jayson Tatum and Josh Jackson among others. Depending on protection agreements, the pick could even be a lottery pick as the Mavs, even with Whiteside, are not guaranteed to make the playoffs.
The Heat may ask for additional picks if ever this trade is explored. There would be competition for Whiteside even though he's a free agent at the end of the season, as teams trade to try and lock him up beforehand
