Update: Jimmy Butler is officially out for the Golden State Warriors alongside Draymond Green and Stephen Curry, according to ESPN.
The Golden State Warriors will be facing the Miami Heat, and everybody has been anticipating Jimmy Butler's return to play his former team. Butler is listed as questionable with a low back strain, but it seems like he's more unlikely to play, according to ESPN's Shams Charania.
The Warriors faced the Orlando Magic on the first night of the back-to-back, and they may be trying to stay cautious with some of their veterans, such as Butler. Stephen Curry is already being listed as out, while Butler and Draymond Green are questionable. At this point, it wouldn't be a surprise if none of their Big 3 played.
It would have been a game to watch, as last season was full of drama when Butler was on the Heat. They eventually traded him to the Warriors, where he had a lot of success toward the final stretch of the season, and helped them get to the second round of the playoffs, where they were eliminated by the Minnesota Timberwolves.
After their loss against the Magic, Butler had a cryptic response when asked if he would suit up against his former team.
“Who knows? We’ll see how we feel when we wake up,” Butler said.
On the Heat's side, they don't seem to be worried about the matchup as well, including head coach Erik Spoelstra, who brought up the fact they've already played Butler after he was traded last season.
“We already have done the game, so how many games do we have to play for it not to be the big storyline?” Spoelstra said.
Bam Adebayo is also looking at the matchup as just another game.
“You kind of block it out,” Adebayo said. “You move forward in life. We got a great team playing great basketball, and you want to continue that rather than try to chase a headline.”
As of now, it looks like they may have nothing to worry about storyline-wise if Butler is unlikely to play.
