Advertisement

Chris Bosh reveals how LeBron James told him he was leaving the Heat: 'Through a text'

LeBron James has caught no shortage of flak for how he announced he was joining the Miami Heat back in 2010, but there was apparently at least one person who had a problem with how he left the team.

That person would be Chris Bosh, who discussed the circumstances of his former teammate’s departure for the Cleveland Cavaliers in free agency during an appearance on Thursday’s episode of the “All the Smoke” podcast.

When asked by host Matt Barnes how James told him of the decision, Bosh was blunt.

“Through a text.”

Ouch. Bosh also revealed that he didn’t get much advance notice before James’ Sports Illustrated essay announcing his decision went live:

“I thought he was BSing, and then about 10 minutes later, it’s everywhere. I understand it. I get it. At the time, I didn’t understand it. At the time, in my mind, I was ready to put the team back together because we had just lost. So we wanted to put something back together so we could win, and it really didn’t go like that.

“I took offense to it, to be honest with you, at first. I was only thinking of how I felt about it. Me and Bron talked about it, but I’m a competitor, and to be honest with you, s---, when you back to the locker room and LeBron ain’t in that chair, and then everyone’s looking at you for those 25 points, and looking at D for that 25 points, damn man.”

Bosh later said it took him “months” to get over the situation, and only after hashing things out with James in person.

You can see Bosh’s full breakdown below:

Bosh played only two more seasons in the NBA after James’ exit, and the Heat didn’t reach even the Eastern Conference finals again until this year, where they lost to James’ Los Angeles Lakers.

All of that seems pretty understandable on Bosh’s end. James was well within his rights to elsewhere in free agency, but that didn’t mean the people he was leaving had to like it, especially if he really only told them 10 minutes before the rest of the world found out.

However, it’s also hard to stay mad at the guy who helped get you two rings in the first place.

Miami Heat forward LeBron James (left) and center Chris Bosh (right) both react during the second half against the Minnesota Timberwolves at American Airlines Arena.
LeBron James' exit from the Heat rubbed at least one teammate the wrong way. (Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports)

More from Yahoo Sports: