Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook (Photo : Getty Images)
The Miami Heat are in the thick of playoff contention but they may have to do it without key player Chris Bosh.
Bosh is one of the more underrated players in the NBA as not too many would recall, he was the franchise player of the Toronto Raptors and had a 20-10 average in points and rebounds before he agreed to take the third wheel role with the Miami Heat.
Now there is speculation that he might retire if doctors determine that his blood clots could endanger his health. While there is still a lot of time required to determine this, there are some quarters who have placed weight on Pat Riley's statements on the Sun Sentinel.
"You've got to really see the big picture in where you are," Riley said this past week in carefully scripted comments offered through the Heat's in-house media outlets. "From 2014 to this point, once LeBron left, we had some decisions to make. We had always been looking at 2016 and 2017. Just like back in 2006 we looked at 2010."
This is simply Riley's grandiose, long-term plans, which should not be a surprise for one of the best executives in the history of the game. He would go for the big fish, and history seems on his side that he would catch them. The rings prove this assumption.
The Heat do not have cap flexibility and Bosh is their highest paid player. Pursuing free agents like Durant, and even mentioning Russell Westbrook, can cause some fans to overthink.
"What happens in '16 and '17, are the next two years of being able to build this team back to a championship contender," Riley said. "That's our goal. That's my goal. That's my desire."
In the Real GM Miami Heat forum, these comments were already "heatedly" discussed and debated on whether it is related to Bosh or not. One of the forum moderators suggested taking it for what it is and nothing more. From 'QUIZ:'
"Like gom said, I doubt this has anything to do with Bosh. As we discussed earlier in the season the 2016 FA class sucks. It really is Durant or nothing and there's a good chance that Durant decides to sign a 1+1 and wait until 2017 so he can make more money. The 2017 FA is going to be the major one, Durant(possibly), Westbrook, Blake Griffin, LeBron, as well as a bunch of other RFA."
Whether Bosh is with them or not, the Heat can become major players. So would most of the NBA teams, but it's never easy to bet against someone like Pat Riley.
