As the Miami Heat will start a four-game home stand against the Houston Rockets on Monday night, they will once again be without their main star in Jimmy Butler according to the team's X (formerly known as Twitter) account. He is still dealing with a toe injury that he suffered on Dec. 30 against the Utah Jazz that has made him miss the last four games.
There is no doubt that it has been a rough past few weeks for Butler as he has been unable to stay consistently healthy on the floor missing the last eight of nine games played. It all started on Dec. 18 against the Minnesota Timberwolves where he sustained a calf injury that made him miss the next four games until his return against the Jazz where he got another issue.
Butler's agent speaks on if the injury is long-term
After a couple of games knowing it was a foot injury, the team would announce and list Butler to have a toe injury, specifically labeled as a “sprained right 1st MP joint.” Heat fans would speculate if the injury is worse than what it might seem, but Butler's agent Bernie Lee spoke to The Sun Sentinel and said it is not a “long-term” issue.
“Since the Utah game,” Lee said. “We’ve been able to gather all the info we needed to feel comfortable to move forward, and thankfully everything that’s come back has indicated that this shouldn’t be a long-term or lingering issue.”
With Butler having turned 33 years old last September, the questions of his aging contributing to his constant injuries makes Lee laugh to himself. He has seen first-hand how the Heat star has cared for his body and the way he “prepares every day and goes about his craft.”
“Big picture, someone sent me a quote today about Jimmy being on the other side of 30 with the implication, I’m assuming, being that he’s aging, and I had to laugh to myself,” Lee said to Winderman. “Because the reality is, he’s been on the other side of 30 the entire time he’s been in Miami, and truthfully I see the way he prepares every day and goes about his craft, and I expect that he’ll be doing this to the other side of 40.”
Erik Spoelstra speaks on fill-in for Butler and not making excuses
The main benefactor to Butler's absence has been rookie sensation Jaime Jaquez Jr. who both have been compared to quite a bit. In the month of December, the UCLA product won his second Rookie of the Month award averaged 16.1 points, 3.8 rebounds and 2.7 assists while shooting 48.1 percent from the field and 84.9 percent from the foul line.
“That’s definitely impressive,” Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra said, “And the most important thing is his play has impacted winning. He’s earned his minutes because it’s impacted winning. It’s a good nod. It’s not something that we’re going to celebrate. But it’s nice to have a young player ready to help us win.”
During the Heat's last contest of their brutal five-game road trip where they faced the Phoenix Suns, Butler was sent back to Miami to undergo further treatment in preparation for his return. Spoelstra said that Butler will be considered “day-to-day,” but he expressed that the team is not making any excuses for injuries to any player.
“Nobody cares if we have guys out and we’re not making any excuses for it,” Spoelstra said after the Suns loss. “Our injuries have been, in my mind, minor ones where guys haven’t been out for an extended period of time.”
Bam Adebayo's mindset with injuries plaguing the Heat
Another figure in the Heat organization that shares the same sentiment is star Bam Adebayo who has the mindset that if the team has players out, it doesn't guarantee a loss. This resilience has resulted in a better than expected start for the team through 35 games.
“How I articulate it is basically just because we got guys out doesn’t mean we can’t get a win,” Adebayo said. “It makes you value all 17 guys, it makes you value everybody who’s on the roster because you need to have all 17 guys believing that. Even though somebody is out, you can still win.”
Injuries have been such a problem for Miami that the big three in Butler, Adebayo, and Tyler Herro have only played in eight games together of the 35 played. In other injury news, Caleb Martin is once again “doubtful” for Monday's game against Houston has he continues to deal with an ankle injury suffered on Christmas Day against the Philadelphia 76ers.
The one good “injury” news from the Heat is that key defender Haywood Highsmith is not in concussion protocol anymore and is off the injury report. Against the Jazz, he collided hard into guard Colin Sexton which resulted in him being unable to walk by himself off the court. It is fortunate to see that he has recovered and suffered no further injury.
Miami is looking to get back in the win column after losing to the Suns as they return home to face the Rockets Monday night. The team is currently 20-15 which puts them at sixth in the Eastern Conference.
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