Fans of the Miami Heat held their collective breath on Sunday afternoon as Jimmy Butler lay on the floor at Madison Square Garden.
In the middle of the 4th quarter of an eventual Heat victory, Butler has his ankle rolled up on. He collapsed in a heap with his face on the hardwood, as the ABC broadcast cut to commercial. When they returned, Butler was up and walking, but with a very noticeable limp.
Jimmy Butler Wants To Play Tonight In Game 2
Jimmy Butler wants to play tonight, per @ShamsCharania
“I think he’s gonna try to play as today goes on… That sprain wasn’t as serious as we all saw.” 👀
(Via @FanDuelTV ) pic.twitter.com/JcXF93APtl
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) May 2, 2023
He would remain in the game, though he served mostly as a decoy the rest of the way. Butler was walking on the injured ankle, though it was obvious that he was favoring it. It was immediately known that his status for Game 2 would be in question.
The Heat obviously need Jimmy Butler. Their upset of the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round sent shock waves through the league, as Giannis and company were the title favorites. They were able to accomplish the feat thanks in large part to Butler, who averaged 37+ points in the 5 games and had God-like performances in order to upset the #1 seed.
Their second round opponent is the New York Knicks, and while not as talented as the Bucks, they will provide a tough matchup themselves. But the Heat were already able to steal the first game and take away home court advantage, which is huge given the unknown status of Butler.
Jimmy Butler posted a picture of himself walking in New York City on his IG story after injuring his ankle in Game 1 👀 pic.twitter.com/259YIQ3WKi
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) May 1, 2023
But there have been encouraging signs over the last 24 hours that can lead us to believe that the injury isn’t as bad as we all thought. Jimmy Butler will still be listed as doubtful for tonight’s game, but it doesn’t look that way from what we have seen through social media.
Yesterday, Butler posted a picture of himself on his Instagram page, an image of him walking down a New York City sidewalk without the aid of any kind of crutch or boot. There was no story reported with it, but the insinuation was felt. On Tuesday morning, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that he believes that Butler will try and play in tonight’s Game 2, and that the ankle sprain “wasn’t as serious as we all saw”.
The sports books aren’t buying it. The oddsmakers have the Knicks listed as -6.5 point favorites, which is a number that could plummet should Butler be made available. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:30PM Eastern.
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