In early May, the Heat revealed that Chris Bosh—who has not played for Miami since February due to a mysterious ailment that may or may not be related to blood clots—would not make an appearance during the remainder of the 2016 NBA Playoffs. They did so with an incredibly vague statement that didn’t reveal much of anything:
The statement did make it sound like Bosh would be back with the team next season, though. But according to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, that might not be the case. In a report released this morning, Windhorst revealed that sources have told him “there is fear within the Heat organization that Bosh’s condition will prevent him from ever being cleared to play by team doctors.” Bosh has reportedly visited with a handful of specialists in recent months, and the belief at this point in time is that Bosh could be “forced into a medical retirement.”
Bosh reportedly wants to play basketball again and doesn’t seem to be on board with the “medical retirement” idea, but if he isn’t cleared to play, it’s unlikely the Heat would allow him back on the court. Further, there’s a league rule in place that would allow the Heat to take the $75 million Bosh has left on his current contract off the books if he doesn’t play for a full year. That means it might make the most sense for the Heat to leave Bosh on the bench next season until Feb. 9, 2017 (Bosh's last game was Feb. 9, 2016) at which time they would be able to cut ties with him if an independent doctor approved by both the Heat and the NBA Players’ Association says it’s not in Bosh’s best interest to continue playing basketball.
Bosh hasn’t spoken about his health or much of anything in weeks as he has refused to speak with reporters during the Heat’s playoff run. But now that the Heat have been eliminated from the postseason, the team is going to have to start to solidify plans for next season, so more info about Bosh’s future should be available soon. Stay tuned and check out Windhorst’s full report here.
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