After missing the latter part of the past two seasons due to blood clots, Miami Heat big man Chris Bosh is pushing to play in 2016-17.
According to Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald, the 32-year-old veteran is frustrated by how the Heat have handled his situation.
In an effort to make it clear he believes he is ready to play, Bosh released multiple videos on Twitter, including this one in which he addressed his status.
Everybody keeps asking if I’m hooping.Yes,I’m hooping.I’m a hooper MRCHRISBOSH On Snapchat #TeamBosh #Basketball pic.twitter.com/pXPdRe7fJe
— Chris Bosh (@chrisbosh) August 29, 2016
Per ESPN.com’s Michael Wallace, Bosh expects to be medically cleared for training camp.
Bosh missed 29 regular-season games, as well as Miami’s entire playoff run last season due to a recurrence of his blood clots. The previous year, he missed 30 games due to blood clots and sat out an additional eight with a calf injury.
When healthy, though, Bosh continues to produce when he is on the court. He has made the All-Star team in 11 consecutive seasons and averaged 19.1 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game in 2015-16.
The Heat were reluctant to bring Bosh back into the fold last season despite his desire to play, but they need him now more than ever following Dwyane Wade‘s decision to sign with the Chicago Bulls. Miami did retain center Hassan Whiteside in free agency, but the team lacks a go-to guy on the offensive end and a veteran leader aside from Udonis Haslem.
Bosh checks all those boxes, and if he does manage to get cleared, his return will be a huge coup for a Heat team that is on the fringes of the playoff picture in the Eastern Conference.
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