“Party in the city where the heat is on
All night on the beach till the break of dawn
Welcome to Miami (bienvenido a Miami)
Bouncing in the club where the heat is on
All night on the beach till the break of dawn
I’m going to Miami
Welcome to Miami”
– Will Smith, “Miami,” Big Willie Style
After all the research and rumor mongering by the big shot pro basketball analysts like Chris Broussard and Ric Bucher, it turns out that The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air knew exactly how the 2010 NBA free agency frenzy would play out as early as 1998 when he dropped his hit-single “Miami” and took the pop world by storm. I am not sure if Smith will be on hand to welcome the newest addition to the Miami Heat, Chris Bosh, but regardless of where the original Man in Black is at one thing is for sure – the combination of a re-signed Dwayne Wade and newly acquired Bosh in South Beach makes the Heat an instant title contender. Read on to see the implications of this new dynamic duo on the future of LeBron James and the state of the NBA.
Check out a rundown of how all the stars aligned for the Bosh/Wade Miami connection from ESPN.com:
Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh are teaming up together on the Miami Heat, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.
Whether LeBron James, the kingpin of this summer’s celebrated free agent class, will join them remains to be seen. James will announce his decision Thursday night at 9 ET during a one-hour special on ESPN.
Wade and Bosh are expected to announce their decision on Wednesday, according to the source.
Both players are expected to get the maximum amount allowable under the league’s collective bargaining agreement, though the addition of James could change the players’ salaries. Contracts cannot be officially signed until July 8.
It was not immediately clear whether Bosh will sign with Miami outright or join the Heat through a sign-and-trade deal. Bosh could earn $125 million over six years via sign-and-trade, but only $96 million over five without it.
“Either way, he’s definitely going to Miami,” the source said.
James or not, the Heat could emerge as one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference with Wade and Bosh aboard. Wade, who led the Heat to the NBA title in 2006, is re-signing with the club, while Bosh will leave the Toronto Raptors after seven years with the club.
Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo, in a text message to The Associated Press on Wednesday morning, said “I have nothing official from anyone.”
One source with knowledge of Toronto’s thinking told ESPN.com’s Marc Stein that the Raptors, as of 9 a.m. ET, had yet to hear anything official from Bosh’s camp about his intentions.
Toronto’s growing frustration with the lack of communication with Bosh in recent days and reluctance to participate in a sign-and-trade with Miami has been well-chronicled. But the source said that the outcome — whether a sign-and-trade can still be salvaged or whether Bosh will indeed sign with Miami as an outright free agent — was “unknown” at this point.
ESPN.com’s J.A. Adande reported earlier this week that the Raptors have become “increasingly disenchanted” with the idea of helping Bosh obtain a maximum contract via a sign-and-trade deal.
Don’t let any of that “sources with knowledge of the situation” poppywilly fool you, Bosh is coming to Miami – signed, sealed, and delivered. The only question that I, along with the rest of the sporting world, have left is where LeBron fits into this equation. All I know is that come tomorrow night at 9 PM ET I will not blink once as I am locked in ESPN with my lucky rabbit’s foot, purple-haired troll doll, signed 8 X 10 photo of Dolph Lundgren as He-Man from Masters of the Universe, and any other superstitious object I can get my hands on as I pray for King James to come to New York. Imagine just how wild the new aged Heat-Knicks rivalry would look in next season’s Eastern Conference finals. Please God, bring basketball back to the Big Apple.
