NBA: The Best 2016 Free Agent For Every Team

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May 5, 2016; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Miami Heat center Hassan Whiteside (21) bumps into Toronto Raptors center Jonas Valanciunas (17) in game two of the second round of the NBA Playoffs at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-USA TODAY Sports /

Los Angeles Lakers – Hassan Whiteside

The Showtime team may not have a shot at Kevin Durant or LeBron James, but adding the rim protecting big man from Miami to complement the young roster wouldn’t be such a bad idea.

Hassan Whiteside’s contract doesn’t include any Bird Rights since he was signed for less than three years, so the Los Angeles Lakers throwing a max contract at him — or possibly less — to lure him away from South Beach is absolutely a possibility.

There aren’t many players out there better than Whiteside. He and Julius Randle are a great match as well. Randle is a ball handling power forward who starts outside the paint, leaving that for Whiteside to create havoc in and set pick and rolls for D’Angelo Russell and Jordan Clarkson. Furthermore, the Lakers were really bad on defense this year, and while not all of that could be attributed to Roy Hibbert, he wasn’t exactly great in that area.

It’s realistic that the Lakers could add Ben Simmons or Brandon Ingram to a roster already featuring Russell, Clarkson and Randle. Whiteside is the perfect piece on the market to anchor those players together, and his wallet would certainly be rewarded as well.

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