After moving on from his time with the Miami Heat this summer, 7-foot big man Hassan Whiteside now looks to turn a page in his career. The 30-year-old does not exactly leave the Heat with legendary status, following a highly-publicized falling out with the squad.
Nonetheless, for Miami head coach Erik Spoelstra, he has nothing but good things to say about his former prized big man, stating that he has no regrets when it comes to his relationship with Whiteside.
“I enjoyed working with Hassan,” Spoelstra said, via Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel“and I think he'll look back on it at some point and think that we brought out a better level out of him.”
Whiteside was part of a four-team trade this summer, which was centered around Jimmy Butler. He will be entering the new season with the Portland Trail Blazers, and the change in scenery might just be what Whiteside needs to jumpstart his career.
For his part, Spoelstra admits that there were some bumps along the way with Whiteside, but that he actually has fond memories of their time together with the team.
“It's unfortunate the way some of the teams turned out,” Spoelstra said of Whiteside's Heat rosters, “and some of the adversities that we had, we weren't really able to see what was possible.”
“I like him as a human being,” Spoelstra said during a private moment on the Heat's practice court at AmericanAirlines Arena, “and I liked coaching him. And I'll continue to root for him as I would anybody else that comes through here.”
This is very professional from Spoelstra here, as he looks to end things with Whiteside on a high note. These two did not exactly see eye-to-eye during Hassan's five-year stint in Miami, but at least coach Spo appears to be extending an olive branch right here.
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