Chris Bosh To Miss All-Star Game (Calf)

This year’s list includes seven first-time finalists: four-time NBA champion O’Neal; nine-time NBA All-Star Iverson; NBA referee Darell Garretson; college coach Tom Izzo; the first African-American coach in a pro league John McLendon; four-time WNBA champion Sheryl Swoopes; and 10-time AAU national champions Wayland Baptist University.

The All-Star appearance would have been the 11th of Bosh’s career. The injury is undisclosed, but Bosh will be replaced by Atlanta Hawks’ center Al Horford who is now enroute to Toronto.

Through a statement issued by the Heat, the All-Star said that he would remain in Toronto to support his teammates.

Replacing the Heat star in the three-point contest will be Portland guard C.J. McCollum.

Bosh was scheduled to participate in the Three-Point Contest on All-Star Saturday Night.

The reason given was due to a strained calf, and that was confirmed by Bosh later. “But I will also use this weekend to try to heal and focus on the second half of the HEAT season”.

Bosh did not mention the injury during Friday’s All-Star media day availability session. While Bosh looked fine, he, and the Heat, may not want to be taking any chances on fate hitting the player two years in a row.

“It’s the team that we had”, Wade said. “It does have significance being here and being able to just really take in the experience and be an All-Star again in the city where I pretty much grew up”.

Shortly after the 2015 All-Star Game in New York, Bosh was diagnosed with a blood clot on his lung – which, he believes, formed when he was kicked in the calf during a game weeks earlier. The condition was serious enough to have him miss the remainder of that season.