The Golden State Warriors lost Jimmy Butler III (sore left knee) to an injury in Tuesday’s 124-112 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. The devastating news comes at a time when the Warriors are also without Stephen Curry, who is sidelined at least until next Friday’s home game against the Timberwolves.
Butler left for the locker room in the second quarter of Tuesday’s game, but briefly returned to the court a few minutes before halftime. However, the six-time All-Star could not brave through the injury and was ruled out of the remainder of the game.
Warriors head coach Steve Kerr provided an update on Butler after the game.
“I don’t know anything more,” Kerr said of Butler’s injury, via ESPN’s Anthony Slater.
“I didn’t even know [he was out] until I was drawing up a play with a minute to go [before the second half] and somebody came in the huddle and said Jimmy is down.”
Jimmy Butler Injury
Butler finished with six points (2-of-7 FG), three rebounds and one assist from 15 minutes of action before leaving the game
With Butler sidelined, the Warriors are expected to give extended minutes to Gary Payton, Jonathan Kuminga and Seth Curry. Kuminga, who played only 16 minutes in Tuesday’s loss, could also win back his starting role. The Congolese forward began the season as a starter but quickly lost his role, with the Warriors citing “lack of spacing” as a reason for his benching. However, with Butler — also a non-shooter like Kuminga — sidelined, the Congolese forward could get another shot to prove his worth.
Warriors Begin Road Trip
Jimmy Butler is expected to accompany the Warriors on their three-game road trip starting on Thursday, which includes stops in Philadelphia, Cleveland and Chicago. However, it’s unknown if he will be cleared in time for game action, especially for the back-to-back contests against the Cavaliers and Bulls over the weekend.
The Warriors confirmed Tuesday that Curry won’t be making the trip, with the hope that he will be back for next Friday’s home game against the Timberwolves.
“He will not make the trip. He’s gonna stay home,” Kerr said of Curry on Tuesday night, via 95.7 The Game.
“It was a long shot for him to play in the back-to-back [against the Cavaliers and Bulls]. And we don’t play again until Friday, so it just makes perfect sense for him to stay home with [director of sports medicine and performance] Rick [Celebrini], get the rehab done here, get his work in and hopefully be ready for Minnesota next Friday.”
The Warriors fell to 11-11 Tuesday night after losing to the reigning NBA champions. Kerr’s team started the season with a 4-1 record and was projected by many analysts to finish as a top-three seed. However, it would appear that their aging roster is unable to keep up with the rigours of the 82-game slate. Besides Curry (quad) and Butler (knee), the Warriors are also without Al Horford (back) and De’Anthony Melton (knee).
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