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Let’s just say that Pat Riley had the luck of the Irish for the past three off-seasons. He managed to make the Big Three, Richie Rich, rich while getting Mike Miller, Ray Allen and Shane Battier to commit for cheap. But for as much praise as the Miami Heat front office gets, things could have gone way different in 2010.
And that’s hard for me to say because I’ve never been the biggest Chris Bosh fan or much of a fan at all. So when his name came up as a free agent target, it was a no-brainer. The Heat should sign Amar’e Stoudemire.
He was more aggressive than Bosh, could step out and hit a 15-foot jumper and it didn’t hurt that he was one of my favorite players in the NBA. On the other hand, Bosh was as soft as a snuggie.
Stoudemire looked like a great fit, as he shined as a star for the New York Knicks. And everyone made sure to point that out as he outplayed Bosh through the first half of that season. But that all changed once Carmelo Anthony stomped into the Garden. He showed that two wasn’t always company as Amar’e struggled to play second fiddle. Which means being part of a big three could have been too much of a crowd.
Meanwhile, Bosh was thriving alongside Lebron James and Dwayne Wade and staying relatively healthy while “S.T.A.T’s” 90-year-old knees had gone brittle.
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“I don’t know what the plans are, when they plan to put him on the floor to start running. So we’ve just got to still take it a day at a time and he’s got to listen to the medical people.” said Knicks coach Mike Woodson to ESPNNewYork.com when asked about Stoudemire’s 2013 playoff return.
With one title, two Finals appearances and a possible third, Bosh is proving why most of us should only play general manager from the couch.
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Richard Nurse is a Miami Heat columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @blackirishpr.
