Miami Heat: Top 3 Hassan Whiteside trade destinations

1. Cleveland Cavaliers

Only a few weeks back, this deal would’ve seemed a wild fantasy.

The Cavaliers had just won 18 out of 19 games, which included reeling off 13 wins in a row. In contrast, the Heat were barely treading water, and were on the outside-looking-in for an elusive playoff spot.

Fast forward the clock, and with the Heat now winners of six consecutive games, the Cavaliers are currently hemorrhaging, having lost six of their past eight games. But it’s not just the fact they have encountered a slump (seemingly an annual tradition) — it’s manner in which they’ve lost.

Over the past eight games, the Cavaliers are ranked dead last in defensive rating (points allowed per 100 possessions,) while ranking 29th in opponent points at 113.9 per game. Their past two games have been particularly embarrassing, losing by a combined 62 points.

The most glaring change to their lineup over the past fortnight has been the return to the court of point guard Isaiah Thomas. Acquired in the offseason in the blockbuster deal that saw Kyrie Irving dealt to the Boston Celtics, Thomas has had to contend with not only adjusting to new teammates, but also having to catch up on game conditioning, having been sidelined since last season’s playoffs.

So far, one player who has taken a real hit to his personal performance has been forward Kevin Love. A four-time All-Star, Love was averaging 20.2 points and 10.2 rebounds, while shooting at a 40.9 percent from 3-point range prior to Thomas taking the court. But since Thomas’ arrival, Love has posted just 12.2 points and 5.6 rebounds per game, shooting at juts a 34.0 percent clip from the field.

Furthermore, having had a usage rate of 27.0 prior to Thomas’ debut, Love has seen this drop to 23.5 over the ensuing five games. In terms of sharing the court with Thomas, here is how Love’s offensive contributions have suffered, albeit in a small sample size:

Thomas on court:

• Offensive Rating: 93.5
• Usage Rate: 20.1

Thomas off court:

• Offensive rating: 117.5
• Usage rate: 26.3

Last season, Irving posted a usage rate for the season of 30.2, while Thomas posted a rate of 33.7 as the main man in Boston. At his best, Love registered a rate of 28.4 in his final season with the Minnesota Timberwolves, when he averaged 26.1 points and 12.5 rebounds per game.

Enter the Heat, who despite excelling during their winning streak by posting an offensive rating of 110.9 (9th overall,) rank 22nd overall at 103.7.

Ultimately, the deal is addressing the pressing needs of each team. The Heat presently are without an All-Star on the roster, with the team at times finding things tough on the offensive end if their 3-point shots aren’t falling. The addition of Love provides the Heat with a genuine centerpiece on offense, providing a perfect fit with the game style coach Spoelstra has been trying to enforce over the past couple of seasons. While Thompson is included as much for salary filler as anything, he nonetheless has wealth of experience, and provides the Heat with an additional big body come playoff time.

For the Cavaliers, this deal is truly game-changing. Whiteside provides them with the elite interior presence they’ve lacked, even during their championship year of 2016. In addition, the Johnsons provide a real point-of-difference to the existing roster.

James Johnson’s size and versatility enables to play a number of positions, including the 5-spot if the team wishes to go super-small. On the other hand, Tyler Johnson provides the Cavaliers with a genuine combo-guard, with his ability to play on and off the ball a terrific complement alongside Thomas and LeBron James.

While the game has changed significantly in recent years, the Cavaliers have a track history of pulling significant moves midseason. Following their midseason acquisition of center Timofey Mozgov in 2015, the team finished the season on a 34-9 run, having stumbled out to a 19-20 start.

So while the loss of an All-Star in Love is a major risk, the bigger risk for the Cavaliers would be to sit idly and face the prospect of losing James again in the offseason. For the Cavaliers, the time is now, as their defense has been atrocious virtually all season.