Outside of LeBron James leaving the Miami Heat for the Cleveland Cavaliers, the second biggest news in free agency may have been Chris Bosh’s decision to spurn the Houston Rockets in his return to the Miami Heat. And as we expected, Bosh stated in a radio interview that he was really close to signing with the Houston Rockets.
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"“It was close. I’m not going to lie,” Bosh said on “The Zaslow and Joy Show” on FM 104.3 The Ticket in Miami. “It was close. It was a weird situation because we were waiting so long and I didn’t know what was going on.“I think you’re always in a situation where it is close even if you don’t leave because teams got very aggressive on me. And I guess as soon as LeBron made up his mind, that’s when everything could fall in line. But I was just waiting, so I didn’t know what was going on.”"
A Bosh signing in Houston could’ve propelled the franchise to the top of the Western Conference. With Dwight Howard’s dominance on the inside and James Harden’s on the outside, Bosh would’ve fit in perfectly between the two, creating a devastating Big 3 in an already tough Western Conference.
But in a spur of the moment decision, Bosh returned to the team where he had helped win two championships and appear in four. Was it him wanting to remain in an environment he’s grown comfortable with? Maybe The five-year near max contract Pat Riley laid on the table following James’ decision likely impacted his decision more.
Now Bosh is back to being the number one guy on a NBA franchise. He’s taken a hit as his numbers dropped due to the role he was forced to play, but now he’s in prime position to remind the world why he’s one of the best big men in the NBA.