Chris Bosh, Future Hall Of Fame Player

Chris Bosh’s career looks to be over as a result of blood clots in his lungs. His contributions to the game mean he should one day end up in the Hall of Fame.

The news that Chris Bosh may be forced to retire from the game of basketball is a sad one. Certainly, he looks to be finished as a Miami Heat player anyway.

The last two seasons have been a struggle for Bosh to overcome blood clots in his lungs, which have kept him on the sidelines.

This is likely much worse than being injured in any way, as Bosh is capable physically of playing the game. His health has just stopped him from doing so.

If he really is forced to retire from the game, he will do so at 32 years old and with two championships to his name.

Bosh was much more than his time in Miami as the third member of the ‘Big Three’ however, which also featured Dwyane Wade and LeBron James.

Apr 25, 2016; Charlotte, NC, USA; Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh (1) talks with guard Dwayne Wade (3) during a timeout in the second quarter against the Charlotte Hornets in game four of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at Time Warner Cable Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports

In fact, given his production on the court, it’s not a stretch to think that he will one day make the Basketball Hall of Fame. Given the career he’s had, it’s no more than he deserves.

Now, I’m of the opinion that Andre Iguodala should one day end up in the same place, and it’s true that people’s opinions differ on this topic greatly.

But over the course of his career, Bosh has done a little bit of everything in the league. It’s not just about winning titles (although that solidifies his case) it’s all that went into his time in the NBA.

Beginning with being drafted by the Toronto Raptors, Bosh put Canadian basketball on the map in a more consistent way. Vince Carter and Tracy McGrady?

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Those times were great (and the uniforms were even sicker) but that era was over before it even began (they were teammates from 1997-2000, making the playoffs just once).

Bosh was added to that team through the star-studded 2003 NBA draft, where he was the fourth overall pick. Soon Carter was gone however, leaving Bosh stuck in the basketball equivalent of no man’s land.

Maybe you don’t remember, but Toronto was not the place to be if you were a pro, kind of like a more coherent version of the Sacramento Kings we have in the league today.

But Bosh came to play every night. He was an All-Star five out of his seven years in Toronto. During that period (from years three to seven) he averaged more than 20 points each year (reaching 24 a night in 2009-10) and more than 10 rebounds during three of those seasons.

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If McGrady and Carter were all flash and no sizzle, Bosh was the level of consistency that the Raptors desperately needed at the time. He never quite had the players around him to do much in the postseason though.

But it’s not a stretch to say that, during that period of his career, he was to the Raptors what Tim Duncan was to the San Antonio Spurs.

You were going to get 70 games a year out of him (perhaps a slightly low number in hindsight) and he was a factor on both ends of the court.

During those seven years in Toronto, he had a positive offensive plus/minus box score every year he was an All-Star (reaching 3.0 one year), while defensively he posted a negative figure only twice.

The perception of Bosh as a softer big man existed even then, but as a stretch 4 he was ahead of his time. The league hadn’t quite gone three point crazy during his tenure in Toronto.

Yet Bosh was a factor from beyond the arc even then. It took time, and some years were better than others (40 percent from long range in 2008-09) but he left the Raptors averaging just under 30 percent from deep.

His Player Efficiency Rating (league average 15) was always above average (20.6 for his career), and in 2009-10, he posted a career high 25.

For context, Kobe Bryant, who led the Los Angeles Lakers to a title that year, had a score of 21.9. When he joined the Heat after that season, he was viewed in a similar way to Wade in Miami.

The move to Miami only increases his case to make the Hall one day and it does so because Bosh completely reinvented himself there.

He sacrificed his own star power for the good of the team and it ultimately led to two championships and four straight NBA Finals appearances.

He averaged three fewer minutes a game and he shot the ball less (both field goal attempts and ball usage decreased in Miami).

However his effective field goal percentage went from 49.5 percent during his time in Toronto to 52 percent once he landed in South Beach. So Bosh was seeing the ball less and being more effective with it.

Nov 8, 2015; Miami, FL, USA; Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh (1) talks with forward Justise Winslow (20) as guard Tyler Johnson (8) and guard Mario Chalmers (15) look on in the second half of a game against the Toronto Raptors at American Airlines Arena. The Heat won 96-76. Mandatory Credit: Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports

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On top of that, he still managed to be an All-Star every year he played with the Heat. This is even more impressive when you consider the center position was taken from the ballot a few years back.

It’s just a shame that his health issues began to eat into his time on the court as a productive player (started and played in 44 and 53 games in 2014-15 and 2015-16 respectively).

The final chapter of his career was only beginning and it was to be as the Heat’s best player. With guys like Justise Winslow and Goran Dragic around him, Bosh would have entered this season as their go-to guy once again.

It would have been cool to see his career come full circle and for him to be trusted as the leader of a franchise once more.

Sadly we have all been denied that experience, but it still speaks volumes that the Heat were comfortable to get him to assume that position once again at this point in his career.

Instead all we’ve got are the memories. How Bosh went from being one of the best big men in the NBA, to a valuable stretch four before they were even fashionable.

How he took less money to join the Miami Heat, where he was instrumental with both his play and demeanor in winning two championships.

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People have gone in for far less, and it is why Chris Bosh will one day find himself in the Naismith Hall of Fame. Anybody who thinks otherwise doesn’t appreciate his subtle greatness.