Chris Bosh believes the Miami Heat still had championship potential after LeBron James departed in 2014 and said he was motivated to win a title without his former teammate.
Speaking on the latest episode of the All the Smoke podcast with Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson, the Hall of Famer reflected on the immediate aftermath of James’ return to the Cleveland Cavaliers and the direction of the Heat franchise.
“We had a squad man, I felt not to say we were gonna win it all but we could’ve competed for a championship…. I wanted to establish myself in the record books, I wanted to establish myself without LeBron to be honest with you. We wanted to win without him to be honest. It’s something to say Shaq won without Kobe, Kobe won without Shaq. I wanted to put myself in that category and on that pedestal.” Bosh continued. “I wanted to help D Wade get back to that status as well. I felt really good about our team. We were in 2nd or 3rd place. Sh*t if we get to the Eastern Conference Finals, let’s play some ball. I’m not worried about it at all.”
Earlier in the podcast, Bosh revisited the moment James informed him via a last-minute text that he would be leaving Miami. He previously admitted he “took offense” to how the decision unfolded, saying it took months before he fully processed the departure and adjusted to life without the four-time MVP.
Despite the disappointment, Bosh said he believed the Heat remained positioned to contend in the Eastern Conference. Miami finished 37-45 in the 2014-15 season after injuries limited both Bosh and Dwyane Wade. The following year, however, the team rebounded with a 48-34 record during the 2015-16 campaign.
Chris Bosh believes the Heat could’ve competed for a championship before he was sidelined with blood clots and says he wanted to prove he can win a ring without LeBron 👀
“We had a squad man I felt not to say we were gonna win it all but we could’ve competed for a… pic.twitter.com/mMbtylmPPb
— Heat Central (@HeatCulture13) February 13, 2026
Heat’s 48-win resurgence fueled Chris Bosh’s belief in post-LeBron James title hopes
The Heat advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals that season and pushed the Toronto Raptors to seven games before falling just short of a conference finals matchup against James and the Cavaliers. Bosh was sidelined for the postseason due to recurring blood clot issues, a condition that ultimately ended his playing career.
At the time of his absence, Miami sat among the top teams in the East standings, reinforcing Bosh’s belief that the group could compete at a high level without James.
“We were very confident but it just wasn’t meant to be but I eventually came to the realization that what else do you want? Don’t be greedy, you did everything bro,” Bosh said. “I was talking to me and my man, Maverick Carter, just talking and I said, it didn’t happen the way it was supposed to happen. He said, ‘it never happens the way it’s supposed to happen.’ And when he said that, I was like aw damn, you right. And it kind of put me into a mode to where I have to figure something else out because heaven forbid if something happened while I was on the court, which’s been plenty of times, I feel like I got away with enough because people die for way less. I was like, ‘I should be here’ because usually the people that have the thing that I have, they are not here anymore. I kind of just took that to heart and moved on and let it out of my system and moved on.”
Bosh’s career cut short, championship belief never wavered
Bosh averaged 21.1 points and seven rebounds during the 2014-15 season and 19.1 points and 7.4 rebounds in 2015-16 before his career was cut short. He was later inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021.
While Miami never returned to the Finals during Bosh’s tenure after James’ departure, the franchise later reached the NBA Finals in 2020 and 2023 under a new core led by Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo.
Looking back, Bosh maintained that the Heat had the talent and confidence to compete for another championship — even without James — if circumstances had unfolded differently.
