Recent rumors have emerged that the days of 7-foot center Hassan Whiteside with the Miami Heat are numbered as he is set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer and that the Los Angeles Lakers are interested in acquiring the young big man.
With his current salary pegged at less than $1 million, it is safe to say that he is bound to get a magnanimous wage increase come July.
Some analysts say that Whiteside could receive a max deal or something close to it when that time comes, but what is certain is that the Heat will not be able to afford him anymore considering the salaries of the other players in Miami's roster.
Meanwhile, the Lakers are set to unload the league-high contract of Kobe Bryant as the NBA legend ends his 20-year basketball career. Thus, the considerable amount of cap space created will be able to accommodate Whiteside and one or two other high-profile free agents to the Hollywood team's side.
Heat Nation said that "the Lakers are in desperate need of a legitimate post presence" as All-Star big man Roy Hibbert is not getting the job done. Hibbert is also going to be an unrestricted free agent this summer and it looks like LA is not going to re-sign the gangling 7-footer for next season.
Whiteside's present low salary makes him difficult to trade before the deadline as Miami has to include a lot of add-ins to any deal to make it work.
However, Fansided's Michael Saenz noted that "if the Lakers are sure that they're willing to offer a max contract to Whiteside, it would make sense to trade for him now".
Saenz suggested a trade involving Whiteside and Luol Deng, with the latter's expiring contract, in exchange for Lakers shooting guard Lou Williams, who is said to be currently on the Lakers' trading block, for salary matching purposes. ESPN's NBA Trade Machine approves such a deal.
If the trade pushes through, Miami gains another reliable bench scorer that is a legitimate Sixth Man of the Year awardee while Los Angeles gets their young big man who is sure to be a perfect complement with point guard D'Angelo Russell in pick-and-roll plays. Definitely a win-win situation.