Despite all the tension between Chris Bosh and the Miami Heat, the two-time champion had very nice things to say about one specific player in the organization: Udonis Haslem.
Bosh, in the second of his five Monday “Players Only” appearances on TNT, reflected on the Heat’s 2012 playoff run when he went down with an injury and described the impact of Haslem as a teammate:
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"UD was the guy who held it down."@chrisbosh on how @ThisIsUD helped him through an injury during his career. #PlayersOnly pic.twitter.com/V18jQQXr8E
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) March 7, 2017
Both forwards played together in Miami from 2010-2016, going to four finals and winning two championships. Although Bosh remains on the team’s roster, Heat president Pat Riley declared back in September the Heat would not work toward the 32-year-olds return.
The ending of Bosh’s career with the Heat may come across as ugly but that doesn’t take away from the success that was achieved in the past, including the 2012 playoff run that led the Big 3 to its first championship.
During the same series in which Bosh went down against the Indiana Pacers, Haslem iconically fouled forward Tyler Hansbrough hard in response to a previous hit on former Heat guard Dwyane Wade. Later, the Heat’s all-time leading rebounder admitted he committed that foul to defend Wade.
That was the type of Haslem was back then and still is today. A ruthless, protective teammate who stands behind his guys for anything and takes necessary sacrifices for the better of the team. It’s why he’s still on the team and represents the Miami Heat culture better than anyone in franchise history.
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