It seems power forward Amar'e Stoudemire is not very pleased with how the Miami Heat is currently treating. This could also mean that the athlete might leave the team once he enters the free agency market.
On Sunday, Heat faced off against the Toronto Raptors for the Game 7 of the conference semifinals. And, as NBA fans already know, that game did not end well for the Miami franchise as it lost by 27 points to the Raptors.
But, aside from the bitter loss, another factor that definitely had an impact on Stoudemire is the fact that he never saw any playing time at Game 7.
The decision to leave Stoudemire sitting on the bench is still unclear but head coach Erik Spoelstra may have changed the lineup due to Hassan Whiteside's knee injury. With him out of the game, Spoelstra presented a relatively smaller lineup consisting of Justice Winslow at center.
This, of course, did not work well for the team in Game 7. Stoudemire also referenced basketball inventor James Naismith and said that teams need an inside presence.
"Dr. Naismith created the game to be an inside-out gamer," he said according to the Bleacher Report. "It's going to always matter. It's how the game has always been played."
This feeling of disappointment could then lead to Stoudemire leaving the team once he enters the free agency market. Of course, at this point, it's hard to speculate where he could end up in next season but a lot of franchises would probably have no problems signing the 6'10" veteran. But then again, he could still change his mind and stay with the team.
Still, even though the Heat lost, Stoudemire is feeling pretty content regarding his latest season primarily because of his health.
"For me personally, I showed great health, showed resilience and consistency of playing," he said. "Would love to have played more but, for the most part, it was a successful year from a health standpoint."
"Great chemistry," he added. "I enjoyed the guys. I had the best time of my life with my teammates this season."
