The desire from Hassan Whiteside has been relentless, to make his mark, to prove his worth, to show how he rates . . . on NBA 2K15.
OK, perhaps it hasn’t reached that point. And it’s safe to say that making points with Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra remains the priority over the video game.
But since he mentioned his passion for the game — and improving his rating — the emerging center has decided to ride the video wave beyond nights such as Wednesday in Minnesota, when he had 24 points and 20 rebounds.
That had him this week going back and forth with NBA 2K digital-marketing manager Ronnie Singh about the expanding diversity of his repertoire.
From Whiteside’s Twitter account: “I hope you see this mid range jumpers and lobs I got that.”
From Singh’s, “I see you bro.”
Already, Whiteside’s rating has gone from the upper 50s to the high 70s, a formula that is updated through the web based on the center’s nightly performances.
“He DM’d me. I kind of responded back. I thought it was funny,” Whiteside said of the Twitter exchange, with the Heat now turning their attention to Friday night’s game against the San Antonio Spurs at the AT&T Center, the final stop on this four-game trip that has gotten off to a shaky 1-2 start.
Whiteside said the social-media fallout regarding his 2K passion has been another element of his unexpected celebrity.
“It’s funny to me. I’m enjoying it,” he said. “I’ve been playing 2K since I was young. And we always joked around, saying if my player was ever in the game, if you make it to the NBA, you want your player to be as good as possible.
“So it’s funny when you’re playing as yourself on there, and you know you can do stuff, but you can’t do it [in the game].”
That’s why he requested a higher rating for his mid-range shooting, an unexpected aspect he has displayed in recent games. And he’s not shy about taking them, with a jumper the only shot he missed during his 12-of-13 performance in the 102-101 loss to the Timberwolves.
Asked about the reply he received, Whiteside said, “It’s just kind of what you do on the court. I hit a couple of mid-range jumpers, so he might add a better rating.”
But Whiteside also makes clear that for all the notoriety his numbers have created, the Heat’s 21-28 record remains a sobering reminder of where he stands, currently with no guarantee that he’ll be able to take his game to the playoffs for the first time.
“It’s tough. It’s tough that we lost like that,” he said of the 102-101 loss to the league-worst ‘Wolves. “I mean, having 20 and 20, it looks good, but if we lose, it really doesn’t mean anything. It’s records and all, but it’s really nothing. It really don’t mean nothing if you don’t win.”
That’s where the video game enters the equation, as a bit of needed escapism.
For now, Whiteside said he has been unable to unlock or secure any cheat codes of his video version, even as he cozies up to the game’s staff.
“Nah, I need some, though,” he said with a smile.
Spoelstra said the video-game Whiteside is the least of his concerns.
“As long as it’s not stopping him from coming to work an hour and half before, an hour and a half after,” he said. “As long as he’s committing to the player-development program that we talked about when I met with him eyeball to eyeball, I don’t care about that.
“Maybe if he was doing that instead of committing to the player development, then I’d be.”
For all the advanced stats and metrics he deals with, Whiteside’s NBA2K rating is not something Spoelstra has investigated. And, no, he has never played the game.
“I have just heard from my nephew that the coach of the Miami Heat doesn’t look like me,” Spoelstra said. “He’s eight.”
Spoelstra explained that when it was his turn to have his image digitized for the game, the special equipment broke.
Until this return to the league and breakthrough, Whiteside said he had to create his own Hassan Whiteside video version. He did not go as far, though, as to scan his image into the game, as is possible.
“Nah,” he said, “I never did that. It was just another guy. I was a point guard, 6-7.”
iwinderman@tribpub.com. Follow him at twitter.com/iraheatbeat or facebook.com/ira.winderman.
