NEW YORK -- In a moment of panic, the idea to leave his car amid rush hour in New York and run to Madison Square Garden for Game 3 briefly flashed through Chris Bosh's mind on Thursday.
Imagine being stuck in traffic in Manhattan and witnessing a recognizable NBA star sidestepping people in a frantic hurry to get to a basketball game. Bosh thought better of it.
"I wasn’t going to run," he said on Saturday after practice at Madison Square Garden. "I wasn’t going to book it down the street. I’m not going to lie, I thought about it. Because we were right there and I was like, ‘I know it’s 45 [minutes] on the clock, man.'"
With the birth of his son landing during the first round of the playoffs, Bosh has had a hellish schedule over the last few days. He has flown back and forth from Miami to New York five times since Tuesday evening. The latest trip was this morning. Bosh, who flew back to Miami after Game 3 to be with his wife and newborn, arrived in New York around noon on Saturday for the Heat's final practice before Game 4. Bosh missed Friday's practice.
"I’m lucky with the schedule but I’m lucky to have such a great organization behind me," Bosh said. "At no time was it stressful."
Bosh flew to Miami on Wednesday evening to witness the birth of son, who was delivered at 3 a.m. on Thursday. Bosh enjoy the special moment with his family then hustled back to New York Game 3 that night. He cut it close. Bosh arrived in New York on Thursday two hours before tipoff but then found himself snarled in a traffic jam that stretched all the way from New Jersey into Manhattan.
"Oh my gosh, it was terrible," Bosh said of the traffic in the Lincoln Tunnel. "But that’s New York traffic, man."
Bosh has had a trying season off the court. In addition to the birth of his son -- a stressful time in anyone's life under the most ideal circumstances -- Bosh suffered through the loss of his grandmother after the All-Star break.
“I’ve handled it well, I think,” Bosh said. “I just try to be strong for my family. That’s what it’s about. The difficulty with my grandma passing right after the All-Star break and then it’s funny how things just work—the circle of life.
"Death brings life and I was able to bring my son into it. But, you know, in both cases you miss a few games but you have to stay strong in your mind and worry about what’s going on right in front of you at that time."
Bosh finally had time to catch his breath on Saturday but he said he won't rest easy until the playoffs are over.
"I’m not going be relieved until the playoffs are over and we realize our goal," Bosh said. "It’s nice to know that they’re healthy and I can just concentrate on [Sunday]. They want me to do that. We have a huge opportunity [Sunday]. We’re trying to do some difficult things and [Sunday] is not going to be easy. This is good preparation for us for where we want to go."
Congrats on the birth of your son. I hope and pray you all win the Championship this year!
Posted by: Sanford Hall | Saturday, May 05, 2012 at 07:54 PM