Miami Heat’s slump against Indiana Pacers puts the focus on the impact of Chris Bosh – NBA Feature
Miami Heat’s two consecutive losses to the Indiana Pacers have led to a heated debate on Chris Bosh.
With Bosh injured, why did the Heat fail so miserably? It is because Bosh is the most important guy in the Heat lineup and the one person who brings balance to this team.
The power forward strained an abdominal muscle in game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semi Finals against the Pacers. He missed the two games that Miami has played since then and the Heat have lost both.
The man who was criticized all season long for not delivering and doing the job he was supposed to do and proven his worth without being in the team. In his absence, Roy Hibbert of the Indiana Pacers has been having a feast on the boards as well as the lower post. Not having to worry about a big man inside, Hibbert has also been helping his teammates defensively to guard Dwyane Wade and LeBron James.
In the absence of Bosh, Miami also have one less scoring option which no one else in their current roster can fill. In the absence of Bosh, Miami are struggling with the pick and roll play which is so critical to their success, as both James and Wade feed off it to score their points.
Bosh has been criticized because he averaged 24 points and 10.8 rebounds in 2009-10 season while this season, he is averaging 18 points and 7.9 rebounds. But what people fail to understand is that Bosh was not sharing minutes with James and Wade back in 2009-10. He has taken a back seat in this team and is focusing on the role that will help him be useful for the Miami team and bring balance into it.
Also, Bosh is a very good shooter and having a person like him in the team opens up the defense of the opponents and provides chances of penetration.
But one of the biggest advantages of Bosh was his presence in the centre position, where he made people respect his presence. In his absence, opposing teams know Miami have no strong presence in the centre and hence move out on defense to assist in double teams, while not worrying about the interior. Roy Hibbert, after scoring 19 points and 18 rebounds in the game 3 win over the Heat, said this:
"Without [Bosh] in the game, I can wander a little bit more and make the paint look a little more crowded and block more shots. When he's there, I have to respect his ability."
In Bosh’s absence, Wade has also not been able to make his presence felt. He has a poor performance late in game 2 where he could have won the game for Miami, and followed it up with an even worse game 3 where he managed to score only 5 points. His frustrations on the court led to a stand-off with coach Erik Spoelstra after a team time out. Wade’s game is also attached to Bosh since Bosh sets up the pick and rolls for Wade, while also distracting the opposition number so Wade can go for his drives.
All in all, this series has shown just how much of an important player Bosh is for the Heat. He is anticipated to be out for at least the series against Indiana. In his absence, the Heat need to change their strategy and get some contributions from players other than LeBron and Wade otherwise it will be difficult for them to progress in the playoffs.
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