The Dallas Mavericks may have missed out on adding Los Angeles Clippers center DeAndre Jordan, but it looks like they have another shot in landing an efficient big man in Miami Heat center Hassan Whiteside.
Whiteside was an impact player for the Heat last season who felt the loss of star forward LeBron James.
But because of the structure of his current contract, there is a possibility Whiteside will be placed on the market and Mavs fans are weighing on a possible deal.
Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reported last month, "With Whiteside to fall short of full Bird Rights due to only a two-year tenure with the team, the Heat still will have to create salary-cap space to re-sign him next summer.
"The only way for the Heat to go over the 2016–17 salary cap to re-sign Whiteside would be if he would sign for the average salary as part of his Early Bird Rights, a figure of less than $10 million, one expected to be far below his market value," he added.
Whiteside's value skyrocketed after his performance last season for the Heat who were finding their identity after James' departure.
The 26-year-old center was a shocker as he averaged 11.8 points, 10 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks per contest in 48 games (32 starts) played in the 2014–15 season.
Now, as Whiteside's contract makes him a free agent in 2016, the only way the Heat could lock him before becoming one and assuring that they will get something is by trading him to a team with an ample salary cap space.
That is why the trade with the Mavericks is a viable option for both teams involved in the deal.
Sports Illustrated's "The Smoking Cuban" presented a possible trade scenario which will give the Mavericks Whiteside and veteran big man Josh McRoberts in exchange for another veteran center in ZaZa Pachulia, young forward Dwight Powell, and a 2017 first-round pick.
The deal will give Miami a flexible cap space which may help them in their chase of signing Oklahoma City Thunder's Kevin Durant in the 2016 free agency.
For Dallas, it will give them a younger core with Whiteside coming in and if he continues to develop, it will be considered in the future as a big roster move that paid off.
