Heat's Hassan Whiteside really should watch more tape of DeAndre Jordan
Miami center isn't influencing enemies, saying the Clippers All-Star is limited: 'He just catches lobs'
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2 min read
Hassan Whiteside is apparently not a big fan of DeAndre Jordan. The Miami Heat center dismissed a comparison to Jordan on Thursday, saying all the Los Angeles Clippers center does is finish alley-oops created by Chris Paul, via the Palm Beach Post's Tom D'Angelo. The Heat play the Clippers on Friday.
"No," Whiteside said. "He catches lobs. I shoot jumpers, catch lobs, block shots. I do a lot. He just catches lobs."
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"It don't really matter to me who I'm guarding," Whiteside said. "I just come out here and just play. He catches lobs. He has CP3 as a point guard.
"I kind of just compete against myself. I don't really pay attention to any other centers. I'm still trying to beat 12 blocks (Whiteside's career high). I don't see any other centers. I just complete against Whiteside every day. I'm going to try to outdo myself last game."
It's easy to laugh because of Whiteside's personality. He does not lack self-confidence and is extremely proud about his ability to compile 20-point, 20-rebound games and triple-doubles with blocks. If you never watched him or Jordan play and just looked at their basic, per-game numbers, you might even agree with his assessment. Whiteside scores more and takes 13.7 shots per game, while Jordan only takes 6.8, almost all of which are dunks or layups.
| PPG | RPG | APG | BPG | FG% | FT% | |
| Hassan Whiteside | 17.6 | 14.7 | 0.7 | 2.3 | 54.2 | 53.7 |
| DeAndre Jordan | 11.7 | 12.6 | 0.7 | 1.8 | 65.0 | 54.1 |
If we're going to take Whiteside's thoughts seriously, then his argument doesn't hold up.
- When it comes to defense, it's not even close. Jordan is considered a Defensive Player of the Year candidate not only because of shot-blocking ability, still far and away Whiteside's best attribute as a defender. While Jordan used to chase blocks at the expense of playing solid team defense, he's now one of the smartest backline defenders in the league. He communicates, switches onto smaller players and covers ground as well as anybody his size. Whiteside is not that kind of player, at least not yet, and the Heat are much worse defensively when he's on the court.
- Whiteside pointed out that he shoots jumpers, though he's not great at it. Inside of 5 feet from the basket, Whiteside has shot 65.7 percent. From five feet and out, he has shot 38.3 percent. On offense, he is most effective as a finisher out of the pick-and-roll and an offensive rebounder. You know, like Jordan.
- If Whiteside is going to bring up Paul, then it's worth discussing the roles they play on their respective teams. It makes sense that Whiteside takes more shots because he's not playing with Paul, J.J. Redick and Blake Griffin. Jordan has worked on his post game over the years, and you'd probably see him using his right-handed hook shot more often if he were on a different team. Part of what makes the Clippers so successful is that the core players understand their roles.
In general, there's nothing wrong with players saying they compete against themselves rather than looking at what their peers are doing. As a competitor, Whiteside has every right to go into Friday's game and every game thinking he's the best center on the court. It's a little troubling, though, to see him reject this particular comparison so strongly. If he's ever going to be the dominant defender he has the potential to be, he needs to be more like Jordan.
