Heat send Hassan Whiteside home after he's ejected in loss to Spurs
Early in the fourth quarter of the Heat's loss to the Spurs on Tuesday, Hassan Whiteside threw an elbow at Boban Marjanovic while the two battled for rebounding position. It caught Boban in the chin, and after reviewing the play, the referees ruled that it was a flagrant-two foul, which comes with it an automatic ejection and a one-game suspension.
It was clearly a frustration foul by Whiteside, and was reminiscent of the ugly play from J.R. Smith against the Celtics from last season's playoffs which earned him a two-game suspension.
Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra knew exactly what had happened, and made it clear that it would not be tolerated when (via ESPN.com) he sent Whiteside home before the game was finished.
Heat teammates said Whiteside had already left the arena by the time they returned to the locker room after the game, and coach Erik Spoelstra confirmed that Whiteside was told to leave.
"That's something we'll deal with with Hassan," Spoelstra said. "We don't condone that kind of play. We've been through this with him before. But it's a disappointing play. That's not a basketball play."
Whiteside was out of the league for two seasons in large part due to maturity issues like these, but he had mostly turned things around in Miami before taking a clear step back. Whiteside leads the league in blocked shots with an average of almost four per game, and has become an important rotation player for the Heat this season. But it's clear his coach and his teammates are disappointed in this recent lapse in judgment.
"The next step for him is really learning about reputation," Chris Bosh said afterward. "Unfortunately, he's taken a step back. You have to build your reputation back up. Whether it's right or wrong, whether he made contact or not, I really don't know. But people see that and tend to expect certain things."
