3 players the Los Angeles Lakers could trade Alfonzo McKinnie for

Hassan Whiteside

There is a lot of hate for Hassan Whiteside. Some of it is absolutely justified. However, if you can get an elite rim protector, and elite rebounder for next to nothing, you do it and figure out any problems later on.

Whiteside is by no means the perfect player. He is selfish, doesn’t pass the ball, has tunnel vision, doesn’t make his team any better despite putting up at times gaudy stats, and he simply can’t seem to stay in any one place for a long period of time.

With the Los Angeles Lakers in need of a rim-protecting center, that sounds like music to the purple and golds ears.

Whiteside had some of his best years in Miami.

Miami was a perfect situation for the shot-blocking 7-footer.

A 1st class organization that had veterans all over the roster, an elite head coach, a great front office led by Pat Riley, and a 1st class ownership group led by Micky Arison.

When Wade retired, it was clear that the Heat as an organization was going in another direction and Whiteside was firmly not part of that direction.

Which organization has a veteran-laden roster, a championship-caliber head coach, a great front office, and a 1st class ownership group led by the 1st female owner in major professional sports to win a championship in Jeanie Buss?

That’s right! The Los Angeles Lakers.

Whiteside would be the ideal addition to the Los Angeles Lakers.

With Dwight Howard last season, the Lakers have proven that they can turn what others might consider a locker room problem into an extremely productive and valued member of a championship roster.

Whiteside seems to already be in the dog house with former Lakers head coach and current Sacramento Kings head coach Luke Walton.

The Kings’ loss would be the Laker’s gain.

The purple and gold would be getting an elite rim protector who is the ideal mix between the Laker’s previous center pairing in Dwight Howard and JaVale McGee.

Whiteside would bring the rim protection that Howard and McGee brought to the table, he would be able to rim run as he is a mobile big and he can rebound at an elite level.

Whiteside would be getting nowhere near the same minutes as he did in Miami or Portland. He would be getting about 20MPG.

Whiteside offers the Lakers a potentially really impactful luxury —he allows for multiple Lakers big men to rest. If Gasol needs a rest or needs to be sat for a game, Whiteside can come in and take them minutes.

If Anthony Davis is being overplayed or is being rested in a back to back scenario, the Lakers have players like Kuz to step into the starting line up but they also have Whiteside to step up from a rim-protection and shot-blocking point of view.

Be a star in your role is what the Lakers preach.

If Whiteside were to land on the Lakers, the purple and gold would have a ridiculously deep center rotation.

If they were to pick up a player in the buyout market such as JJ Redick, Trevor Ariza, or Kent Bazemore then the Lakers roster would be scarily deep.

If Walton continues to underplay Whiteside and reduce his minutes, the purple and gold could swoop in and add depth at a position that really needs it.