The Minnesota Timberwolves suffered a huge loss against the Houston Rockets on Friday night after shooting guard Jimmy Butler went down with a torn meniscus in his knee. Fortunately, he was able to avoid what many had presumed to be a torn ACL.

As a result, there is some optimism surrounding his potential return this season. According to Shams Charania of Yahoo Sports, Butler could be back on the court by the time playoffs roll around:

Jimmy Butler is expected to undergo surgery in coming days and could return within 4-to-6 weeks, league sources tell Yahoo. Final timetable will be set after procedure.

While it is a tough loss for the Timberwolves, they can at least take solace in the fact that Butler was able to avoid a catastrophic knee injury. They will now have to navigate through the rest of the 2017-18 NBA season without their best player and unquestioned leader.

Fortunately, Minnesota was able to build a comfortable cushion for clinching a playoff spot prior to Butler's injury. They currently sit at 36-26, which is good for fourth place in the Western Conference. Regardless, the Timberwolves will still have to find a way to maintain that spot sans Butler in what is shaping up to be a crowded playoff race.

That said, Minnesota must now go back to their original one-two punch in small forward Andrew Wiggins and center Karl-Anthony Towns. Wiggins and Towns will have to hold it down until Butler is presumably able to return to the court by playoff time.