The Miami Heat have always had amazing centers throughout their history, but Hassan Whiteside is something special. Just recently, Whiteside became the first D-League alumn with 1000 points and 1000 rebounds in a single season. He is not done yet, however, as he keeps breaking franchise records and establishing himself as one of the best big men to ever wear a Heat uniform. This is Whiteside's first season with a big contract as he received a $98-million deal last summer. So far, it seems that the contract is paying off as Hassan Whiteside is having a brilliant season.
Hassan Whiteside leads the NBA in rebounding
With 14.0 rebounds per game, Whiteside is the best rebounder in the entire league. The 27-year old center is averaging a career high in rebounding and he has had six 20-rebound games so far in the season. There are only five games left for the Miami Heat in the regular season, and Whiteside is closely followed by Andre Drummond who averages 13.9 rebounds. It will be an interesting race between these two great rebounders, and we will see if Whiteside can become the first Heat player to get a rebounding title.
The most impressive thing about Hassan Whiteside is that he keeps playing through injuries, and he still posts sensational numbers. The big man played with injuries in the last six games and he still managed to average 16.0 points and 12.5 rebounds in this period.
Whiteside keeps breaking Miami Heat records
Before Hassan Whiteside, no Heat player had averaged over 11.8 rebounds per game. This average was achieved by the great Rony Seikaly in two consecutive seasons, and Whiteside himself averaged 11.8 rebounds last season. Even though the Miami Heat have had many incredible centers throughout their history, such as Seikaly, Shaquille O'Neal and Alonzo Mourning, no one was as impressive when it came to rebounding as Hassan Whiteside.
Whiteside is the first Miami Heat player to grab over 1000 rebounds in a single season. At the moment, the big man has 1011 rebounds and he also has five more games left to play. The previous record was held by Seikaly, who grabbed 934 rebounds in the 1991/92 season. Whiteside broke the record two weeks ago and he is now making sure that no one catches up with him in the future.
