Numbers are secondary

Spoelstra sees growth in Whiteside’s game

He had been through the waiting game three times, first when the starters were selected for the NBA AllStar Game, then when coaches filled in the reserves, and finally with Commissioner Adam Silver on Wednesday night selecting Carmelo Anthony as the Eastern Conference injury replacement for Kevin Love.

The waiting game has been a learning process, but so, too, Hassan Whiteside said, have been the strides made this past month, with Heat coach Erik Spoelstra continually stressing to his shot-blocking center to look past statistics.

“I think the most important point about that is his best level of winning basketball was after the [start of the] month of January, when we came back from our road trip,” Spoelstra said in advance of his team’s game against the Rockets at the Toyota Center.

“And it was probably his worst statistical stretch of the season. And if he ends up getting rewarded because of that, it’s a reflection on the team winning, It’s more a reflection of him making winning plays and the league recognizing that.”

Ultimately, there was no reward, just a Caribbean vacation that was previously planned.

The fact that the Heat went 11-30 over the first half of the season largely removed Whiteside from consideration, when fans, players, media and coaches were casting their votes for the initial 12 representatives from each conference.

“Earlier, not that any of it was all on him, but when you shoulder a bigger responsibility as one of your better players and you have a losing record even with good stats, the league may not recognize that, to be an All-Star,” Spoelstra said.

Creating All-Stars is secondary to Spoelstra to creating winning players.

“He has already started to earn that,” Spoelstra said of heightened attention on Whiteside during the 13-game winning streak that was snapped with Saturday’s loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. “What I’ve enjoyed about this process is developing and teaching a player really how to win. And he still is such a young player in terms of experience that he’s never been in this situation before, where he’s been responsible for winning.

“He’s been able to fit in on other teams. And to shoulder bigger responsibility, it’s fun to see players grow.”

Where Whiteside has seen statistical opportunities, Spoelstra has continually stressed winning plays. There now appears to be a buy-in.

“It’s a little bit of everything,” Whiteside said when asked to quantify what a “winning play” was in his view. “It’s a lot of things that I feel like I’ve improved on. There’s a lot of things I feel like I’ve improved on during the winning streak.

“Get loose balls, get loose rebounds, those are winning plays. Hustle points, those are winning plays. Getting a tough block, that’s winning play. There’s a lot of things that are winning plays that I did.”

A year ago, Whiteside led the NBA at 3.68 blocked shots per game. He entered Wednesday’s play fourth in the league at 2.04. That, he said, is another example where the numbers can lie.

“It’s just different personnel,” he said of this season’s roster. “They’re a lot younger. They try to block the shot more. So a lot of the blocks, I would have to go jump over their backs. And if I don’t get it, I give up an offensive rebound.”

Whiteside said he could appreciate the benefit of time off before the Heat resume their schedule Feb. 24 against the Atlanta Hawks at Philips Arena.

“I’ve been sick this past week, I’ve been real sick,” he said. “So I’m feeling a lot better.” Heat moved their preseason training base to Houston for three days the first week of October.

Wednesday, the Heat were back at the Toyota Center, thankful for the previous hospitality.

“I felt that was a really important part of our preseason,” Spoelstra said of the whirlwind that had the Heat going from an exhibition in Washington to a quick pit stop back in South Florida, to the time in Houston, to an exhibition against the Timberwolves in Kansas City, Mo. “It helped us fast track. It helped us to get know each other better. We were away for training camp [in the Bahamas] and it really felt like an extension, a minitraining camp after that.

“Houston was terrific to us, last minute, to be able to use their facilities and spend another couple of days preparing. And it showed during the preseason when we had all our healthy bodies, that we were a little bit ahead of the game.”

MIKE EHRMANN/GETTY IMAGES Hassan Whiteside had some of his worst statistical games this season during the Heat’s winning streak, but his game continues to improve.