Jimmy Butler has not played since he sprained his MCL in his right knee during the Miami Heat's Play-In Tournamnet loss to the Philadelphia 76ers last Wednesday, and he won't be back on the court at any point in the team's first-round playoff seres against the Boston Celtics, according to Shams Charania.
"It's crazy to me that Jimmy Butler played three quarters [vs. the Sixers] with what I'm hearing now was a severe MCL sprain. He is not going to be back in this series. This is a rehab that's going to go at least one month, could be two months of rehab... Thankfully for him it wasn't the ACL, it wasn't the meniscus, but even if the Heat were to advance in this first round somehow, his postseason availability would be up in the air."
The Heat have not provided an official timeline for Butler, but did announce that he has suffered a sprained MCL. While the team was able to beat the Chicago Bulls without him in the second round of the Play-In Tournament, their 20-point defeat to the Boston Celtics in Game 1 was a true indication of how much he matters to this team.
Late in the first quarter of the Heat's loss to the Sixers, Butler pump-faked Kelly Oubre Jr. way up into the air, and the Oubre landed right on top of him. Butler crumpled to the floor in obvious pain while Erik Spoelstra and Pat Riley looked on with concern. While Butler remained in the game, the Heat were unable to hold on, and Butler later told Oubre on Instagram that they would be "throwing hands."
Butler averaged 20.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and five assists per game this season on 49.9% shooting from the field, and has been one of the most clutch playoff performers in recent years. With Butler leading the way, the Heat have been to at least the Eastern Conference Finals in three of the last four seasons, and made two NBA Finals appearances.
Even with him, they would have been underdogs against an improved Celtics team that rolled through the regular season with a 64-18 record, but Butler's presence would have at least given the Heat a chance to make things interesting. After all, they weren't expected to beat the Celtics last season either.
Without him, though, they don't have much of a chance. They never led in Game 1 and trailed by double digits for nearly the entire game, with the deficit ballooning up to 34 points in the third quarter. The ensuing games may be more competitive, but the Heat simply don't have enough firepower to keep up with the Celtics.
