National Basketball Association

Will Chris Bosh Vacancy Give Philadelphia 76ers Trade Partner?

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Tragedy has stricken Miami Heat’s center Chris Bosh, virtually ceasing his career. Will that yield a new trading partner for the Philadelphia 76ers?

Chris Bosh will likely be unable to play basketball this season, or ever again for that matter. While I haven’t followed the medical history of Bosh closely enough to present myself off as an expert, Miami Heat head coach Pat Riley has.

“We are not working toward his return,” Pat Riley said. https://t.co/tdqsAbFIxy

— USA TODAY Sports NBA (@usatodaynba) September 26, 2016

The door to Chris Bosh playing in the NBA. But when a door closes, a window opens. Is this the window of opportunity needed by the Philadelphia 76ers?

Keep in mind that Bosh has played with just two NBA teams, the Toronto Raptors and the Miami Heat. In fact, his migration to the Heat was part of the wildly publicized trio uniting on one team in the form of Chris Bosh, Dwayne Wade, and LeBron James.

LeBron returned to Cleveland, Wade was shamed in free agency and signed on with the Chicago Bulls, and now Bosh cannot overcome the NBA physical.

But his struggles leave a hole in the Miami Heat roster. When he played, he started. Last season, he played in 53 games – a number equal to that of rookie Jahlil Okafor. Despite Bosh’s struggles to remain on the court, he led the team in scoring with 19.1 points per game.

The Miami Heat will be looking for options now. Perhaps one option they should consider is trading for Jahlil Okafor. While Hassan Whiteside rules the post defensively, Okafor would be ideal to come in and plunk in his 20 plus points. The Philadelphia 76ers have most likely concluded that Okafor will play some power forward this year. He could accelerate that transition by working with Whiteside in Miami.

Right now, the Heat does have a 2017 first round draft pick, and without Bosh the team is looking at a lottery pick. While the Heat cannot trade the pick outright, they can factor draft pick swaps for 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020 first round picks.

What other pieces do the Heat hold in their vault which could be used? That remains to be seen.

What we do now is that the situation is beginning to ignite the competitive passion of our current players. Nerlens Noel has erupted leading into Media Day. The team needs to do something. Could this be the window for action to resolve the situation?

Opportunity to resolve the 76ers center crunch will defy prediction. A window will suddenly open. The Miami Heat need offense in their front court this season. Perhaps this is the window.