Hassan Whiteside (Photo : Getty Images)
The Los Angeles Lakers will be the team to watch in NBA Free Agency since they have the combination of cap space and glamor.
While the Lakers may not be favored to land Kevin Durant, there are still some free agents who would place a premium on getting max money and being in a big market team with probably the most rabid fan base.
Most pundits believe that Hassan Whiteside is one such player. Whiteside has yet to grab a big payday in his career and he is unlikely to forego guaranteed money after what he has been through.
Unfortunately for him, that's exactly what the Miami Heat would want him to do. A report from Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald claims that the Miami Heat would not offer the max contract for their breakout center.
"The Heat values him but someone who has spoken to the team's front office said he believes the Heat will try to convince him to take something less than the max deal he almost assuredly could get elsewhere," Jackson declared.
While Jackson backs down from a definite "no" on a max deal, he does reveal something interesting.
"Whether the Heat will go to the max, if Whiteside balks at something less, remains to be seen," Jackson admitted. "And of course, all this is moot if the Heat can sign Kevin Durant, which is Miami's No. 1 priority in free agency. If Miami can sign Durant, keeping Whiteside becomes highly unlikely. That's why the Heat needs a read on Durant before it can move forward with Whiteside."
The Heat prioritizing Durant may be a game changer. While it is presumed that almost all teams capable of offering the max contract will take a shot at Durant, teams can act quickly and take a shot at Whiteside if Durant delays his decision.
Will the Lakers be one of those teams? The advantage for LA is that they can go all in and pursue Whiteside without bowing out of the race for Kevin Durant, as Lakers Nation pointed out.
"If the Lakers do make a run at Whiteside, it would probably be better for them to go after him very early. The Lakers will have enough room to sign two max players so even if they were to lock down Whiteside, they could still sign someone else as well."
The Lakers can even sign Whiteside and use him as a selling point for Durant. The main holes that the Lakers need to fill are at the small forward and center positions. If they land both Whiteside and Durant, they have acquired the best players in the market at their positions of need.
