Concerns linger for Butler; Dragic out
Point guard missing in Denver; ankle doesn’t stop Jimmy Butler
Goran Dragic was ruled out of Wednesday night’s game against the Denver Nuggets by the Miami Heat due to what was officially listed with the NBA as lower-back spasms and recovery from a knee injury.
In reality, it was the latest case of Heat coach Erik Spoelstra taking a prudent approach with his 34-year-old point guard.
A night after Dragic shot 0 for 7 on 3-pointers in the Heat’s 106-86 loss to the Phoenix Suns, Dragic was given a game off during the back-to-back set, just as he had been during the Heat’s prior back-toback set, when he was held out on April 1 against the Golden State Warriors for what the team then listed as “lower-back injury recovery.”
The Heat’s next back-to-back set comes after the Friday’s conclusion of the Heat’s four-game trip against the Minnesota Timberwolves, when the Heat play at AmericanAirlines Arena against the Brooklyn Nets on Sunday and the Houston Rockets on Monday night.
The Heat also remained without guard Victor Oladipo, who did not make the trip after leaving the April 8 home victory over the Los Angeles Lakers due to knee soreness.
Another apprehension for the Heat going into the Denver game was the lingering concern with forward Jimmy Butler, who rolled his right ankle early in the fourth quarter of the loss in Phoenix, before returning later in that game.
Butler, however, was available for the Heat in Denver.
For center Bam Adebayo the thought in the locker room was that if Butler could play, he would play.
“He’s a fighter,” Adebayo said. “So I never really get worried about JB. He’s one of those guys, he’s mentally tough. He’s going to put his body on the line for his teammates.”