All-Star power forward Chris Bosh is eager to once again suit up on the basketball court next season, but the Miami Heat seems to be not ready to let him play without a full go-signal from team doctors. An interesting twist arose as recent rumors suggest that the Heat is perhaps stalling Bosh's return because they want to clear up salary cap space in the future.
The 32-year-old Bosh has been sidelined to season-ending injuries by recurring blood clots during the past two seasons. It remained a major health risk on his part until today as he is still under blood-thinning medications to alleviate the symptoms.
However, the Miami Herald reported that Bosh had found a "new medication that would be out of his system in 8 to 12 hours", which would be enough time for him to safely play on the court by game-time, so "lessening or eliminating the inherent risks of playing a contact sport while on thinners".
Still, the Heat turned down his proposal near the end of last season, which reportedly "angered" the 11-time NBA All-Star. It is currently vague whether Miami had already agreed with Bosh to use the said medication next season, but team president Pat Riley said that they are ready to play him as long as they get a clear approval from his and the team's doctors.
What is interesting is the report claimed "some in the Bosh camp remain angry and suspicious of the Heat's intentions, wondering if Miami was motivated by clearing cap space". It went on to clarify that it is definitely "not the case", though, according to a Heat insider.
According to league rules, Bosh's $25.2 million cap hit for 2017-18 and $26.8 million for 2018-19 can only be cleared off the team's cap if "a doctor that is jointly selected by the league and players association agree his condition is career-ending, or severe enough to put him at risk if he continues playing".
The money owed Bosh will still be given to him, though, even if he decides on an early retirement as his salary "simply wouldn't count toward the salary cap" for the next two seasons, Larry Brown Sports indicated.
Another thing to take not of is that an NBA team is only allowed to get rid of a player from its salary cap "until a year after his last appearance in a game". In the case of Bosh, it would be Feb. 9 next year, which is a little more than six months away.
