The Houston Rockets became “heavily engaged” in discussion with Chris Bosh last night. It took less than 24 hours for them to offer him a contract some think will be tough to turn down. According to ESPN’s Chris Broussard, Bosh is considering accepting a four-year, $88 million deal to play in Houston.
Of crucial note in Broussard’s report is that Bosh talked with LeBron James this weekend after receiving the Rockets’ offer. It’s widely assumed that Bosh will only spurn the Miami Heat if James signs elsewhere, too.
Chris Bosh, after talking with LeBron James this past weekend, is seriously considering the Houston Rockets’ maximum contract offer of four years, $88 million, according to sources close to the situation.
Bosh, since opting out of the final two years of his deal — worth $42 million — with the Miami Heat, had planned to see what James decided before making his choice.
But a conversation with James about his future in Miami this past weekend created enough doubt for Bosh to begin considering his other options, including Houston’s offer, a source said. The source said Bosh did not know whether James was staying in Miami.
It was previously reported that Bosh would prefer to take a maximum contract offer – which the Rockets’ is – from another than the pay-cut that Pat Riley was hoping he’d accept. Broussard’s story confirms that news.
It’s also pertinent that Bosh has discussed their free agencies with James. After it initially appeared that the Heat’s Big Three were working in concert by opting-out of their contracts for next season, it’s seemed more and more in recent days that James, Bosh, and Dwyane Wade will make decisions on their future independently of one another. Henry Thomas, the agent of Bosh and Wade, insists his clients are operating as such, and LeBron’s star sidekicks were reportedly “unsure” of his plans before the holiday weekend.
Obviously, that Bosh has finally made contact with James and is still mulling Houston’s offer is a bad sign for the Heat. Momentum in the LeBron sweepstakes has been hedging the Cleveland Cavaliers’ direction for the past 48 hours – this is just the latest development that casts doubt on the long-held assumption that James would ultimately remain in Miami.
The Rockets have been actively shopping Jeremy Lin since free agency began, and need to shed his contract in order to have enough cap room to sign Bosh for the maximum allowable salary. Broussard’s story says that Houston is “confident” it will be able to do so, and the Philadelphia 76ers seem its most likely trade partner.
Will Bosh diminish a title contender in Miami and strengthen one in Houston? Like everything in the current free agency landscape, it all hinges on LeBron.
Will Bosh sign with the Rockets?
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