Scary news out of Miami.
ESPN’s Dan Le Batard is reporting that sources inside the Heat organization believe, although Chris Bosh believes he’s fully recovered from an apparent blood clot (Bosh hasn’t played since before the All-Star break), rushing him back could be a mistake with fatal consequences.
Here is Le Batard on his ESPN radio show Monday as transcribed by Palm Beach Post:
“This is complicated and it’s not great,” Le Batard said. “They are not in agreement here. The two sides—This runs the risk of getting problematic here at a bad time, because Chris Bosh wants on the court… It’s obvious that Chris Bosh wants on the court and that he’s pressuring the organization…and that his wife is pressuring the organization. They were wearing the #BringBoshBack shirts (Sunday). There is a tension happening.
“I don’t know exactly what to believe here, OK, but I do trust the organization and I trust the people in the organization who tell me things because I’ve never been lied to by them about much of anything. They’re telling me that they’re protecting him from him, but he doesn’t feel any symptoms. This doesn’t feel like the last time. All the doctors the Heat are talking to are saying, and they’re the foremost authorities on this stuff, ‘Hey, a second recurrence of a blood clot situation could be catastrophic, where you’ve got a death on the court.’”
Le Batard went on to add the Bosh’s are going as far as to involve the NBA player’s association in the situation. With Bosh not feeling any of the ill effects the last blood clot brought, he believes he should be out there with his Heat teammates at this critical time of the post-season:
“They’ve scoured the globe trying to find the doctor who will clear them and they’ve got someone that they feel comfortable about, but that does not pair against the number of other opinions on the other side,” Le Batard said. “They’ve got someone that they feel comfortable with who’s willing to allow him to take the risk, but getting one guy…
“One of the things is, he’s not feeling anything. The last time, he felt really cruddy. So he’s looking at this and saying, ‘Why am I not out there? I feel fine. I’m good.’ They’ve got one (doctor) telling them the thing they want to hear… This thing is complicated.”
Bosh is chomping at the bit to get back to help his Heat teammates in the playoffs. He’s been vocal about being optimistic he’ll be back in the lineup and recently he showed what the Heat are missing with this video:
.@chrisbosh: “I still got it” #Heat #HeatNation #BringBoshBack pic.twitter.com/0dhI3jwHbm
— /r/Heat (@Heat_Reddit) April 27, 2016
The truth is, this is an extremely complicated issue. Of course, it’s easy to say “Bosh is playing with his life, he’s got a family to look after”, but think of it this way; being on the floor is his employment. It’s how he feeds his family.
If Bosh really does feel symptom-free, it’s hard to tell a perennial all-star to sit based on the premise of another blood clot that may, or may not be a real problem.
But the stakes are too high to gamble here.
Bosh should sit out the rest of the season, or for as long as medical professionals see fit; whichever comes first. This isn’t a broken ankle or even a concussion, it’s literally a question of Bosh’s body’s ability to keep him alive, while exerting itself at the highest level. If a number of different doctors feel Bosh should remain out, he should remain out.
Ultimately the final decision will, of course, rest with Bosh and his family.
