Chris Bosh, 'still a basketball player at heart,' isn't fond of players resting

Given how Chris Bosh’s last two healthy NBA seasons played out — with blood-clotting issues that cut short his 2015 and 2016 campaigns — one could understand his stance against teams resting players.

But given Bosh’s extended absence from the game after his failed preseason physical gave the Miami Heat enough pause to sit him for the entirety of the 2016-17 season and most likely longer, one might also understand how he may have forgotten about the times he either rested or required more rest.

One of those young guys was Bosh, who along with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade played for a Heat squad that regularly rested its stars in anticipation of deep playoff runs. Perhaps most notably, Miami sat both Bosh and James for the final two games of the 2013-14 regular season — losses to the Washington Wizards and Philadelphia 76ers — conceding the East’s top seed to the Indiana Pacers.

Of course, not every time a player is designated to the bench for rest does he do so willingly. Sometimes it’s coach’s orders. Regardless, even a healthy Bosh never played a full 82-game season.

Whether or not the Heat benefitted from that rest in their six-game conference finals victory over the Pacers, there’s little doubt Miami was gassed by the time they faced the San Antonio Spurs in the 2014 NBA Finals, and an argument could be made those stars would have been more equipped to face the rigors of four straight title series appearances had they rested more often during the regular season.

In his NBA absence, Bosh has been contributing to TNT’s “Players Only” broadcasts, appearing alongside ex-players whose nostalgia for their playing days often belies the reality of their careers in the same way your grandfather remembers walking six miles to school through snow uphill both ways. And considering the health scare that’s forced him out of the game, it’s beyond understandable that, if Bosh were ever healthy enough to play again, he would relish the chance to play at every opportunity.

As for whether Bosh’s career is in the rearview, he described watching from the sidelines this season as “a challenge” but was “reticent to discuss his playing future,” according to the AP’s Tim Reynolds.

The “I’m still a basketball player at heart” line is strikingly similar to his “I’m a hooper” declaration this past August, when he was still intent on an NBA comeback. Bosh took issue with Heat president Pat Riley positioning the 11-time All-Star’s career as “probably over” in September, and as recently as late last month he was “just really still staying ready” in anticipation of a potential return to the NBA.

Whether that return would be with the Heat remains to be seen. The Heat were reportedly waiting until March 1 before deciding whether to buy out the remaining two years and $52.1 million left on the max contract he signed in 2014, if only to avoid the chance of him signing with a playoff contender, and the Miami Herald reported on the last day of February that Bosh had met with Miami’s medical staff recently, and they “are expected to begin the process of a separation at some point in March.”

Keen observers were astute enough to notice the jersey reserved for Bosh on the set of Monday’s “Players Only” broadcast was the No. 4 from his Toronto Raptors day — and not his No. 1 on the Heat:

But then we might also have to read into the Sacramento Kings, Charlotte Hornets and Minnesota Timberwolves jerseys for Chris Webber, Baron Davis and Kevin Garnett, respectively. As always, we hope Bosh makes the best decision for his longterm health, and if that means a return to the game of basketball, may he always be allotted as much rest as he needs to perform to the best of his abilities.

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Ben Rohrbach is a contributor for Ball Don’t Lie and Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at rohrbach_ben@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @brohrbach