Miami Heat forward Chris Bosh will not play in the remainder of the playoffs, Bosh and the Heat announced Wednesday.
"The Heat, Chris, the doctors and the medical team have been working together throughout this process and will continue to do so to return Chris to playing basketball as soon as possible," the team said in a statement.
Bosh has been out since the All-Star break, but said in March that he didn't have any active blood clots, his situation wasn't life threatening and he was positive he would return this season.
In the past week, he and his wife have been more vocal. Adrienne Bosh tweeted with a hashtag #BringBoshBack that the team was missing him. On his Snapchat feed, a video of Bosh shooting three-pointers with the caption "Still got it" was posted.
The National Basketball Players Association (players union) reached the Heat on Bosh's behalf and were "hopeful that all parties involved can meet as soon as possible to resolve the situation."
That resolution came Wednesday with the joint statement from the Heat and Bosh, who last played on Feb. 9. Bosh was diagnosed with a pulmonary embolism – the result of blood clots breaking off traveling to the lungs – on February 21, 2015, forcing him to miss the remainder of the 2014-15 season. He was treated and cleared to play in time for training camp at the start of this season.
"That’s all I want to do is play basketball. … I’m born to play basketball. This is what I’m supposed to do," Bosh told USA TODAY Sports in October.
Bosh and the Heat did not say this past February that he had another blood clot. But he was treated with blood thinner, according to a person familiar with the situation. The person requested anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about Bosh's health.
Both sides have declined to speak to reporters, other than issuing statements.
Pulmonary embolisms can be life-threatening, and the Heat are concerned that he has been sidelined in consecutive seasons. Until the Heat feel comfortable with the medical information they received, they don't want him to play.
Anderson Varejao, now with Golden State, missed the rest of the season in 2013 when he was diagnosed with blood clots on the lung, and last season, Mirza Teletovic, now with Phoenix, was sidelined for the rest of the season when doctors discovered blood clots on a lung. He played and had a good year this season.
After a pulmonary embolism, the body needs time to heal, and blood thinners increase the risk of internal bleeding, ensuring contact sports are avoided until the person is healthy with no signs of clots and no need for blood thinners.
