Miami

Heat Assign Napier and Whiteside to D-League

The Heat assigned Shabazz Napier and Hassan Whiteside to the Sioux Falls Skyforce

The Miami Heat assigned Shabazz Napier and Hassan Whiteside to the NBA Development League on Saturday.

The two players will be members of the Sioux Falls Skyforce which is Miami's affiliate in the D-League. This is considered a demotion for both players but one they should benefit from. In the D-League, Napier and Whiteside should see an increase in minutes and opportunity.

Napier has seen his playing time diminish as of late due to a drop off in production. The first round pick started the year slow but then picked it up in mid-November. Napier played down the stretch of several games which showed the confidence the coaching staff had in him.

There were also a couple of games where the Napier eclipsed 30 minutes on the court. In the last four games combined, the point guard has only played 44 minutes. In those games, he has tallied three points and three assists total. Napier should join Miami again later this season.

Whiteside joined the Heat towards the end of November but has played sparingly. At only 25 years old, Whiteside is a part of the future for Miami and can now gain more experience. Whiteside has not logged any playing time in six of the nine Heat games since joining the team 

The most minutes Whiteside saw in a game came on Wednesday when he scored six points in six minutes. There is a lot of promise for Whiteside and he has a contract for next season in place already. Like Napier, it is likely that Whiteside will find himself back in Miami before the season comes to an end.

The Heat will take on the Chicago Bulls on Sunday looking for a second straight win.

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