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The Los Angeles Lakers Are Why Hassan Whiteside Will Get A Max Contract

By Matthew Hallett

Apr 20, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard Kemba Walker (15) shoots the ball over Miami Heat center Hassan Whiteside (21) in game two of the first round of the NBA Playoffs during the fourth quarter at American Airlines Arena. The Heat won 115-103. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 20, 2016; Miami, FL, USA; Charlotte Hornets guard Kemba Walker (15) shoots the ball over Miami Heat center Hassan Whiteside (21) in game two of the first round of the NBA Playoffs during the fourth quarter at American Airlines Arena. The Heat won 115-103. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports /
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Next season the Los Angeles Lakers will come back into relevance in a big way. Here is the reason why.

The Kobe Bryant era of the NBA is now over and so the Los Angeles Lakers are looking for their next crop of star players.

At the moment, the cupboard is fairly bare for this proud franchise, with only a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel.

D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle look to be players of the future. Jordan Clarkson should be re-signed to a multi-year deal and Larry Nance Jr will be exciting to watch with his high-flying highlights.

Of the current roster, aside from those mentioned above, only Lou Williams and Nick Young would get playing time on any of the top teams in the league.

This summer, however, things are going to change. The Lakers have the No. 2 pick in the draft and I don’t think this year they will surprise anyone with their choice. If Ben Simmons is picked first then the Lakers should go with Brandon Ingram; the opposite should be true is Ingram is selected first.

There is one other thing going for the Lakers this signing season. Over $40 million will come off their salary bill — $25 million for Kobe Bryant and $15.5 million for Roy Hibbert. If Hibbert re-signs with the Lakers, then it will be for a lot less money.

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    • This leaves the Lakers front office with a lot of money burning a hole in their pocket. Who are they going to spend it on? They need to sign a star to get back to relevance. My mind says that Hassan Whiteside will be courted be Los Angeles and will want to take as large piece of the pie that he can get.

    My reasoning for this? When the Lakers were looking around for a center last year, they signed Hibbert. What were they going for? A defensive presence who could be a rim protector and collect rebounds.

    Unfortunately, what they got was a center who averaged 1.4 blocks per game and 4.9 rebounds per game.  Not enough to justify a $15.5 million contract.

    Hibbert was a part of the excellent defensive unit in Indiana, but was found out when he had no help at the Lakers.

    Whiteside is exactly what the Lakers hoped Hibbert would be. Whiteside averaged 14.2 points, 11.4 rebounds and 3.7 blocks per game last season. If he were to sign with the Lakers, you would only expect those numbers to improve.

    Whiteside would get more court time with the Lakers. At the moment they do not have a true center on their roster with Hibbert’s contract expiring at the end of this season. Ryan Kelly is a power forward who the Lakers use at center and Tarik Black is too undersized at 6-9 to be a true center.

    Whiteside would also be the only true star with the Lakers as well, which is a position that he would cherish. Then there is the Los Angeles lifestyle, which I am sure would appeal to the young center who loves the hype of the NBA.

    There will be plenty of other teams who will chase the signature of the young center. Miami will want to re-sign him, pending the Dwyane Wade contract negotiations. Boston is looking for a star and with no disrespect to Jared Sullinger, Whiteside would be an upgrade.

    Depending what happens with Dwight Howard this summer, Houston may also be looking find a center.

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    Ultimately it will be the Lakers’ need, cap space and lifestyle that will be the draw card to possibly lures him away from Miami.

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