When will Miami Heat’s Jimmy Butler return after MCL injury?

To be fair to the Miami Heat, it took what was essentially a historic comeback from the Philadelphia 76ers to snatch victory from their grasp in the opening round of the NBA’s Play-In Tournament. The problem is, as much as they still have another shot at a playoff berth, they will have to take it without one of their major stars.

The Heat have lost Jimmy Butler

If you caught, Wednesday night’s intense clash between the Miami Heat and Philadelphia 76ers in the opening round of the NBA’s Play-In Tournament, then you certainly caught the moment when Heat forward Jimmy Butler suffered what is now feared to be an MCL injury in his right knee. Worse yet, reports now suggest that Butler is expected to miss multiple weeks. Now, as things stand, Butler will receive an MRI scheduled on Thursday afternoon which will - we assume - give more clarity as to what he’s facing.

Regarding how the injury itself occurred, it was during the first quarter of Wednesday’s 105-104 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in the No. 7 vs. No. 8 Eastern Conference Play-In matchup. Incidentally, Butler actually stayed in the Game after the injury and even ended with an impressive 19 points, five assists, and five steals on 5-for-18 shooting. Be that as it may, there is no way to ignore the fact that Butler’s situation is of great concern for the Heat who will now face the Chicago Bulls on Friday night with the No. 8 seed in the NBA playoffs on the line.

What do we know about Jimmy Butler’s situation?

Immediately after news of Butler’s injury, his agent, Bernie Lee, took issue with the reported timeline of his client’s recovery. “Nobody really knows, as we’re going to see the doctor later today,” Lee said. “It blows my mind that somebody who wasn’t even in the arena has somehow come up with a medical timeline. ...We don’t even know. And now we’re having to live in somebody else’s created reality.”

To be clear, Butler suffered the injury in the final seconds of the first quarter when Kelly Oubre Jr. landed on him following a pump fake near the hoop. Fellow players and coaches had an instantaneous reaction to the incident, clearly showing they knew all was not well. The 34-year-old was then seen limping to the locker room following the end of the quarter, however, as mentioned above, he did return. Across the three remaining quarters, Butler scored 12 points on 3-for-14 shooting, though he attempted only two shots during the final nine minutes of the game. “It had me feeling that I couldn’t do too much,” Butler said after the game.

While it remains unclear as to when/if Butler will return, it’s crystal clear what the Heat have lost. Whether it’s his leadership or his literal contribution on either end of the court, Jimmy Butler is irreplaceable. For perspective, the Heat has been one of the strongest teams in the Eastern Conference over the last few years, but with Butler off the floor, they have averaged significantly fewer points. Now, if there is a positive it’s that the Heat’s talisman is known for shrugging off injuries in short fashion while continuing to rack up minutes. Yet, the reality is that initial reports regarding his injury do not bode well. At this point, we can only wait for the results of his scan, but should it come to pass that Butler can’t return to the Heat’s lineup, their hopes of making it to the playoffs will be in grave danger.