The last time anything like this happened it was Jeremy Lin in New York. I have only watched video highlights so the following article, heavily-excerpted from Bleacher.com provides perspective. I was astonished however when I first saw video, from his double-digit shot-block game. Where's the weakness? I was expecting a fluke, like maybe he blocked one with his head, another with his elbow, accidentally. Instead I saw exquisite timing, quick feet, great ball sense. With Jeremy Lin, quick, marvelous penetration, there was some flukiness, some "unconscious" nights shooting, and he didn't play like a classic point guard. He didn't penetrate to pass, he penetrated to score. Whiteside looks to me much like a quicker Dikembe Mutumbo, a classic center. HOW did this guy go unnoticed? Enough from me:
Miami's Hassan Whiteside Is Clearly the NBA's Most Surprising Player
Virtually unknown before the season, Whiteside has become a critical part of the Heat’s playoff aspirations.
Miami's Hassan Whiteside Is Clearly the NBA's Most Surprising Player
Virtually unknown before the season, Whiteside has become a critical part of the Heat’s playoff aspirations.
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Easily the most remarkable part of Whiteside’s ascent to relevance is the path he took to Miami.
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After one year at Marshall University, Whiteside was a 2010 second-round draft pick of the Sacramento Kings. He spent the next two years bouncing between Sacramento and the D-League before leaving in 2012 to sign with Amchit Club [Amchit Club! Lol] a Lebanese [Lebanon! Lmao] team. A year later, Whiteside was playing in China, averaging a double-double for the Sichuan Blue Whales. [WE ARE...BLUE WHALES!]
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In sum: Whiteside was drafted by Sacramento, spent two years in the D-League, moved to Lebanon, left for China, returned to Lebanon, moved back to China, signed with Memphis, went to the D-League and finally signed in Miami. [I love the "back to China." Some people do!]
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Given his career arc, it would have been plenty surprising for Whiteside to put up even league-average numbers. But he has done far more than that. Consider the following (stats courtesy of SI.com): [I cannot reproduce the Sports Illustrated chart.]
One of those names is not like the others. If someone quit watching the NBA in 2012, then looked at this chart today, their first question would be, “Who is Hassan Whiteside?"
Easily the most remarkable part of Whiteside’s ascent to relevance is the path he took to Miami.
...
After one year at Marshall University, Whiteside was a 2010 second-round draft pick of the Sacramento Kings. He spent the next two years bouncing between Sacramento and the D-League before leaving in 2012 to sign with Amchit Club [Amchit Club! Lol] a Lebanese [Lebanon! Lmao] team. A year later, Whiteside was playing in China, averaging a double-double for the Sichuan Blue Whales. [WE ARE...BLUE WHALES!]
...
In sum: Whiteside was drafted by Sacramento, spent two years in the D-League, moved to Lebanon, left for China, returned to Lebanon, moved back to China, signed with Memphis, went to the D-League and finally signed in Miami. [I love the "back to China." Some people do!]
...
Given his career arc, it would have been plenty surprising for Whiteside to put up even league-average numbers. But he has done far more than that. Consider the following (stats courtesy of SI.com): [I cannot reproduce the Sports Illustrated chart.]
One of those names is not like the others. If someone quit watching the NBA in 2012, then looked at this chart today, their first question would be, “Who is Hassan Whiteside?"
In the rankings above, Whiteside is surrounded by the NBA’s top talent. He is the only name on the list who isn’t a perennial All-Star or MVP candidate. Furthermore...Whiteside ranks at or near the top of the league in blocks, field-goal percentage and rim protection.
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Given that few fans had even heard of him six months ago, it would have been surprising for Whiteside to earn an NBA roster spot in the first place. In light of his star-caliber performance, however, his emergence is particularly startling.
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Given that few fans had even heard of him six months ago, it would have been surprising for Whiteside to earn an NBA roster spot in the first place. In light of his star-caliber performance, however, his emergence is particularly startling.
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It would be one thing for an unexpected star to emerge in Charlotte, Detroit or Utah. Small-market teams lacking realistic title hopes tend to receive less media scrutiny than high-profile contenders.
But Whiteside didn’t sign with the Jazz. He signed with Miami, a team coming off four straight years of title contention and scrambling to replace the world’s best player. The Heat were under plenty of scrutiny. And, still, nobody saw him coming.
All of this makes Whiteside’s emergence even more surprising. Not only did he take a comically circuitous route to the pros, not only has he played like an All-Star, but he did this in Miami, a big-market franchise with a huge fanbase and loads of media attention.
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How is it possible that nobody predicted this? All 30 teams had a chance to sign him and passed.
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Star players emerge unexpectedly every year, in every league. But not since Jeremy Lin have we seen a story like this in the NBA. [There you go. I swear--I will take another oath!--I did not read that before I wrote the introduction. Well-written, fun to read article by Robert Connor. I love his emphasis.]
It would be one thing for an unexpected star to emerge in Charlotte, Detroit or Utah. Small-market teams lacking realistic title hopes tend to receive less media scrutiny than high-profile contenders.
But Whiteside didn’t sign with the Jazz. He signed with Miami, a team coming off four straight years of title contention and scrambling to replace the world’s best player. The Heat were under plenty of scrutiny. And, still, nobody saw him coming.
All of this makes Whiteside’s emergence even more surprising. Not only did he take a comically circuitous route to the pros, not only has he played like an All-Star, but he did this in Miami, a big-market franchise with a huge fanbase and loads of media attention.
...
How is it possible that nobody predicted this? All 30 teams had a chance to sign him and passed.
...
Star players emerge unexpectedly every year, in every league. But not since Jeremy Lin have we seen a story like this in the NBA. [There you go. I swear--I will take another oath!--I did not read that before I wrote the introduction. Well-written, fun to read article by Robert Connor. I love his emphasis.]
