Whiteside Salty The Heat Playing Better Without Him

Advance stats continue to tell a story that ends with the Heat simply being a better basketball team when Whiteside isn't on the court. All season long, the numbers have shown the Heat has a drastically better defense withoutits shot-blocking seven-footer standing in the paint. It's no longer too small of a sample size — the Heat is a better defensive team without Whiteside on the court. As it stands, the Heat has a defensive rating of 102.0 with Whiteside on the court and a 96.5 rating with him off the court. The defensive numbers — no matter how hard your eye-test tries to make you disagree — continue to suggest the Heat is a better defensive team when Whiteside doesn't play.

Last week, ESPN's Tom Haberstroh joined the 790 the Ticket's morning show crew to discuss the conundrum the Miami Heat finds itself in and what story the numbers tell regarding the Heat with/without Whiteside.

"When you look at the numbers, with Whiteside on the floor, Dwyane Wade scores just 20.6 points per every 36 minutes, and the Heat get outscored by 44 points. When Whiteside is off the floor, Dwyane Wade is averaging 26 points per every 36 minutes, and the Heat are outscoring opponents by two points," Haberstroh said.

In addition to dropping those concerning Wade-Whiteside stats on Heat fans' laps, Haberstroh also touched on how Whiteside's presence in the paint on offense might be doing more harm than good regarding the style the Heat wants to play with Goran Dragic.

"I think when it comes to Goran, he's one of the best finishers in the league at the rim when he's healthy," Haberstroh said. "It comes down to if you have one less big body that you have to deal with down there in the paint, it's going to be much easier for him to score."

Haberstroh goes on to suggest the Heat may want to cash out on Whiteside and try to get something for him before they let him walk this off-season. Of the possible options mentioned was New Orleans Pelicans forward Ryan Anderson, who is also a free agent this summer.

Regardless of what Miami does with Hassan Whiteside the rest of the season, this has become increasingly clear: The Heat is a better basketball team without him.