Miami Heat to retire Chris Bosh’s jersey number

The Miami Heat have announced they will retire the No. 1 jersey of Chris Bosh in a special ceremony on March 26.

Bosh becomes the fourth Heat player to have his jersey retired after Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway, and Shaquille O’Neal.

“I am proud that Chris will have his No. 1 jersey retired and be honored inside the AmericanAirlines Arena with this recognition for the greatness as a player on the court and his tremendous contributions to the Miami community off the court,” said HEAT President Pat Riley. “His name and jersey will hang forever and always.”

He will see his jersey retired at the AmericanAirlines Arena in a ceremony at halftime of the Heat’s game versus the Orlando Magic on March 26.

The 13-year veteran won two NBA titles with the Heat and had 11 All-Star selections, an All-NBA Second Team selection, an All-Rookie First Team selection, as well as a gold medal with Team USA. Bosh was acquired by the Heat in a sign-and-trade deal with the Toronto Raptors in 2010 and joined Dwyane Wade and LeBron James to form the formidable Big 3, who helped bring home the championship in two out of the four seasons together.

Though his basketball career was cut short due to a recurring blood clot condition, he will always leave a lasting legacy with the franchise — not only for his basketball skills but also his work in the community and his unique personality. It’s fitting that although he was a prolific and gifted scorer, including greatly expanding his range during his time with Miami, he may ultimately be known for two plays in which he grabbed the offensive rebound away from Manu Ginobili and passed it to Ray Allen for that legendary corner 3 as well as his perfect block on Danny Green’s 3-point attempt to seal the victory and the title.

Bosh appeared in 893 career regular season games (881 starts) and averaged 19.2 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.04 blocks and 35.8 minutes while shooting 49.4 percent from the field, 33.5 percent from three-point range and 79.9 percent from the foul line.