We all wondered how things would work out for LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and Dwayne Wade in Miami, after James devastated the Cleveland Cavalier fans, with his made-for-TV- hour long show on ESPN last summer, and that poorly planned method of informing them, of his decision to become a member of the Miami Heat.
To a lesser degree, Bosh stung the fans of Toronto, although that was not likely his intent, with his enjoyment of being courted, so to speak, by teams other than Toronto. It wasn’t exactly a big shock when he left for South Florida.
On Tuesday night, following the Heat’s fifth straight loss, 105-96 to Portland, the former Raptor let it be known that he wasn’t very happy with his role, and lack of involvement in Miami’s offense.
The Georgia Tech alumnus had a poor night against the Blazers, his worst showing this season, scoring only seven points, on 3 of 11 shooting. His Portland counterpart, LaMarcus Aldridge, had 26 points.
Bosh told ESPN.com: “ I just have to be more aggressive in demanding my ( the ball ) comfort zone………I’ll take the fault for that……I’m effective down in the low post area, so that is where I need to start getting the ball. I need to be assertive in demanding it…….I’m saying what I need as a player, a closed mouth doesn’t get fed. I’m uncomfortable right now so you might as well do something else……I never really like to bump against people that are a lot, lot bigger than me. I’m not the biggest guy in the world.” The Texas native also only got one shot in the fourth quarter, of a one point loss to the Bulls last Sunday.
Coach Eric Spoelstra didn’t seem to be in sync with Bosh’s line of thinking, pertaining to seeing more low post plays. “ I think our minds were cluttered last night ( Tuesday). Today, it wasn’t about talk. It was about working and practicing.” He later added: “ We need more paint opportunities, not just from Chris, but from all of our guys working together.”
It also sounded as though LeBron James would have preferred, if Bosh had made his request directly to his teammates. “ Chris can always voice his opinion. If Chris wants the ball then he can ask for it and he can get it. If Chris wants the ball and wants to be more aggressive and want to be more inserted into the offense, all he has to do is ask for it. When he’s productive, we’re a better team.”
While it was James who communicated his departure from Cleveland poorly, to the people of Ohio, in this case, LeBron was right, and it was Chris Bosh who made himself and his team look bad, by criticizing them publicly for his lack of involvement in the team offense. James sentiments are quite easy to read in his words, by noting that all Bosh has to do, is “ask for it and he can get it.”
In a way, it is surprising that “CB-4” didn’t realize before he signed for South Beach, that he might have to defer to James and Wade. Toronto was his team, and clearly, Miami is not. The pecking order for the Heat, does not have Bosh at the top of the list, with no reason to believe that will ever change.
The usually sunny skies of south Florida, may not be looking quite as fantastic to the former franchise forward for the Raptors. Toronto is not the place to be, to compete for an NBA championship in the near future, but at least it was his team, and he was the man who could call the shots. Snowy and cold southern Ontario, may be a reminder to Chris Bosh and everyone else, of what we have all been taught since we were waist high: “ All that glitters is not gold”………even in the “ Sunshine State”.