Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra made it official Friday what Chris Bosh figured would happen.
The Heat center was named to start for the East in Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game in Houston in place of injured Boston Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo.
Bosh had told FOX Sports Florida on Feb. 4 he expected Spoelstra, the East coach, to name him the starter. Spoelstra confirmed it Friday to on the Heat's website.
"Was there any doubt where my loyalties are?" Spoelstra later told Hall of Fame coach Jack Ramsay on ESPN Radio.
Spoelstra had the choice to name any replacement in the starting lineup. It didn’t matter that a center replaced a point guard.
Cleveland fans had been hoping point guard Kyrie Irving would start for Rondo. But now forward LeBron James, who bolted Cleveland in 2010 for the Heat, can slide over to point guard.
With James and guard Dwyane Wade having been voted in by fans to start, the Heat will become the first team since the 1990 Los Angeles Lakers to have three All-Star starters. Bosh had been asked last week if the Heat accomplishment might carry an asterisk since the three Lakers starters, guard Magic Johnson and forwards James Worthy and A.C. Green, all were voted in by the fans.
"Hell, yeah, it should count," Bosh told FOX Sports Florida about expecting at the time Miami would have three starters. "No asterisk. No asterisk."
Bosh, averaging 17.7 points and 7.4 rebounds, will be making his second career All-Star start. While with Toronto, he was voted in as a starter for the 2007 game in Las Vegas.
Chris Tomasson can be reached at christomasson@hotmail.com or on Twitter @christomasson
