Chris Bosh played better after returning from his injury that kept him out of the early rounds during last year's championship run. The Dr. Phil in me always thought that was because Bosh was made aware of the fact that people did care about him in Miami. Or something like that.
The often dismissed and overlooked third member of the Big Three was initially left out on an island upon his arrival in South Beach. He wasn't quite big enough to play center and didn't have the outside game to justify taking the ball out of LeBron James or Dwyane Wade's hands. He was an All Star without a position on the newly formed super-team.
He did enough to help Miami win an NBA championship last season though, and if he doesn't come back from that injury the Heat probably wouldn't have cashed in that first ring. So even while his value has been justified of late, he's reportedly looking to do more. By that I mean he's trying to get bigger, and fill that role under the basket that Miami hasn't been able to fill with anybody else.
This from the 5th Quarter Magazine:
According to the Miami Herald, Chris Bosh has been hitting the weights to bulk up. Apparently, he has added a good 5-6 lbs. of muscle to his frame to prepare himself for his new role of playing center for the Miami Heat. As we all know, the Heat’s biggest concern has been their size in the paint. Chris Bosh stands at 6’11″ and his offensive arsenal does not include a great post-up game. He uses his position at power forward to hit elbow jumpers, grab some rebounds, and pull out the opposing power forwards from clogging the paint. If Bosh does accept the role of being a center for the Heat, he will have to prepare to go up against bigger and taller centers such as Andrew Bynum, Marc Gasol, and perhaps even Dwight Howard. The Miami Heat are definitely a versatile team, but they could have just signed a true center and made life easier for Chris Bosh.
As simply as I can summarize this, here's my take: Chris Bosh, even after adding six pounds of muscle (??) still can't guard Andrew Bynum, Marc Gasol and/or Dwight Howard. But if Bosh, playing the center position, steps out 8 feet from the basket and puts the ball on the floor, those three guys can't guard him either.
This is a good move for the Heat, given their current roster and inability to add a true center, and it's a smart play by Bosh at this point too. He can push the idea he's a true teammate, willing to do anything for another ring, cliche' stuff like that. No matter what his numbers look like at the end of the year, people will point to that first and he'll be good.
I do think it has the potential to work out pretty well though on the offensive end, so long as he can limit the damage defensively. Or actually put on like twenty pound of muscle, I'm not sure people will even notice the "six".
Image: NBA.com
