10 a.m. update: Doctors believe Chris Bosh has a blood clot on his lung, a condition that typically would sideline players for the duration of the season, according to a league source with knowledge of the situation.
Bosh remains at a local hospital and is believed to be on blood-thinner medication. He is weak and fatigued, but the longterm outlook is good.
Though nobody has definitively ruled Bosh out for the season, it's difficult to envision him returning because of the nature of the blood-thinner medication and the toll such a condition takes on the body.
It is unclear if Bosh will require any surgical procedure.
Bosh had been feeling tired and fatigued, with some shortness of breath and pain in the rib area, over the past few weeks, but nobody suspected anything serious until Thursday, when he was sent home from practice and checked into the hospital.
Last weekend, Heat assistant coach Juwan Howard mentioned that Bosh was dealing with a rib injury. Doctors suspect the pain was related to his current condition.
Last month, Brooklyn Nets guard Mirza Teletovic was diagnosed with a similar condition (pulmonary embolus) and will miss the rest of the season. Cleveland forward Andersen Varejao was diagnosed with a blood clot on his lower right lung in January 2013 and missed the remainder of the season.
"They told me stories like, 'Oh my God, I had a friend who died of a blood clot in their long. A week after surgery, I was at home thinking about how I could be gone right now."
Bosh is obviously a big loss; he ranks 13th in the NBA in scoring at 21.1 points per game. If he misses the rest of the season, that means that Bosh, Dwyane Wade, Luol Deng and Hassan Whiteside will have played just 44 minutes together all season.
Without Bosh, Udonis Haslem could move into the starting role at power forward. He has played mostly backup center this season. The Heat's backup power forward, Shawne Williams, was shipped to New Orleans, through Phoenix, in Thursday's Goran Dragic trade. And even if he's released by the Pelicans, league rules prohibit the Heat from signing him.
As stated below, power/small forward Michael Beasley has interest in returning to the Heat, but Miami hadn't called him as of Thursday evening. Rashard Lewis also is available, having recovered from knee surgery.
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