Hall of Famer Chris Bosh helped lead Miami Heat to two championships while playing alongside LeBron James and Dwyane Wade
During the Big Three era of the Miami Heat, LeBron James got most of the attention.
Coming in a close second was Dwyane Wade. And then it was arguably team president Pat Riley and then coach Erik Spoelstra.
That left forward Chris Bosh in likely fifth-place. And he was just fine with that. It didn't mean that's where his value stood.
At times, he was considered the most key cog in the team winning two championships in four straight appearances in the NBA Finals from 2010-14.
Wade and Udonis Haslem both spoke about Bosh's importance during an appearance on the OG's podcast. He was so valuable because of his willingness to accept whatever role the Heat handed him.
The first adjustment Bosh had to make was being the third-option behind James and Wade. It was the first time he had to play off the ball. He was the leading scorer in high school, his one season at Georgia Tech and with the Raptors. Bosh handled the transition with ease.
The next adjustment was Bosh moving from power forward to center to fulfill Spoelstra's commitment to "position-less" basketball. The Heat simply wanted to put their five best players on the court at any given time. It often led to Bosh having to defend bigger centers, which he also fared well.
The final thing Bosh had to grow accustomed to was playing more on the perimeter. After being a low-post player throughout his career, the Heat asked him to become a better spot-up shooter, especially from the 3-point line. This helped the Heat in two ways. One, Bosh became a better scorer because he was doing it also with his jump shot. Two, without a center clogging the paint, it freed up space in the lane for Wade and James to attack the basket.
That is why both often referred to Bosh as the key to success.
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Shandel Richardson is the publisher of HeatRoundtable. He can be reached at [email protected]
