Rapper Big Pooh takes a look at the new Miami Heat.
by Thomas “Pooh” Jones
Even though it is only a few weeks into this brand new NBA season, everyone has already crowned Eastern and Western Conference Champions. There is a split debate on who will win the championship, Miami or Los Angeles. Miami Heat games are selling out all over the USA as people cram in arenas to get a glimpse of the “New Big 3,” “3 Kings,” or whatever moniker they have finally decided on. Everyone has an opinion on the legacy of LeBron, as he went to join another superstar in order to win the championship he failed to bring to Cleveland after seven seasons. I too have my own opinions, but this is not the time for that. Instead I would like to talk about the third member of the “new” Miami Heat, Chris Bosh. 
Through the magic of the NBA Package and Direct TV I was able to watch Bosh play in Toronto for the past seven years, and even though he was averaging close to a double-double, I always noticed a flaw in his game. He always seemed to be missing something in his game that would put him in the same category with a Kevin Garnett or an Amar’e Stoudemire: toughness. When you are the best player on your team, as he was in Toronto, anything less than something close to 20 and 10 would’ve been unacceptable. As I watched Bosh in Toronto, I also noticed a lot of jump shots and lack of physicality around the rim. We call a player with Bosh’s skill set and demeanor a finesse player. When the free agent period of 2010 came I believed Bosh to be a top tier talent but definitely not one worthy of best-player-on-a-team type of money. I don’t recall him making anyone else in Toronto better. I don’t recall anyone in Toronto crying when he left like the whole city of Cleveland (due to anger or despair) when Lebron took his talents to South Beach. The fact of the matter is Toronto may have been done a huge a favor by not having to take on a massive contract for a player that clearly wasn’t willing or able to be “the guy” nor make anyone else significantly better.
This leads me to Pat Riley and the Miami Heat. Kudos to Riley for sweeping in and signing two of the most coveted free agents in probably the most celebrated free agent class in the history of the NBA. And for being able to dump salary, and of course retain Dwyane Wade, while adding the type of talent a Bosh and a Lebron will provide as well as fill the seats in the American Airlines Arena.
My only problem with Riley was the amount of money he paid out to Bosh. There is no way in this world Bosh would have been making more than or the same amount as the second and third best players in the NBA respectively if I was GM (probably why I’m not a GM). There is no way you can tell me that Bosh will impact the game to the tune of 110 million dollars over 6 years with a healthy Lebron and DWade running up and down the court. I always felt the problem with this Heat team would center on Bosh and his role. He will not average 20 points and he will not stop the NBA’s top tier power forwards, but he should at least get close to his career average in rebounds. So far that isn’t the case. Bosh has had a few one-rebound games and has looked lost on the court. Yes it is very early in the season, but I’m already putting Bosh near the top of my list—under Darko Milicic of course—of the most overpaid and unproductive free agent signings over the summer. Of course things could change over the next few months, but right now that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
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