Jimmy Butler sidelined vs. Pistons by foot bruise, his 20th missed game of season
DETROIT — The shorthanded Miami Heat became even more shorthanded Sunday, with forward Jimmy Butler out against the Detroit Pistons due to a bruised right foot.
That latest news comes in the wake of the Heat ruling out forward Nikola Jovic on Saturday due to a strained right hamstring.
Those absences come with the Heat starting this four-game trip already without guard Tyler Herro and forward Kevin Love. Herro is dealing with ongoing tendinitis in his right foot, and Love is sidelined by a bruised right heel.
In addition to being without those four for Sunday’s matinee against the Pistons at Little Caesars Arena, the Heat also lost guard Josh Richardson earlier this month to season-ending shoulder surgery.
Sunday’s absence is the 20th of the season for Butler. He missed the third game of the season for rest, another game early in the season for personal reasons, two in November for an ankle sprain, four in December for calf strain, seven in January with a toe sprain, three in February for personal reasons, one in late February for a league suspension, and now the foot issue.
Since joining the Heat in the 2019 offseason, Butler, 34, has yet to play more than 64 regular-season games, his total last season.
Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said Butler exited Friday night’s victory over the Pistons shortly after his foot was stepped on.
“Probably three or four minutes after the fact,” he said Sunday. “We’ll treat it day to day. His body will let us know.”
For Herro, Sunday was the 11th consecutive game missed, the last eight with the foot issue. He is expected to miss at least one more week, and possibly longer, after taking an injection to the foot last week.
Spoelstra said the hope was to be able to reintegrate Herro into the rotation before the end of the regular season.
“That’s the hope,” he said. “And he’s been making progress and we’ll treat him day to day, keep on making progress. Again, his body will let us know.”
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Love has missed the past nine games since Portland Trail Blazers center Deandre Ayton landed on his foot in the Heat’s Feb. 27 road victory.
For Jovic, Sunday is the first game missed this season due to injury.
“It happened in the second quarter.,” Spoelstra said of Jovic being hurt Friday. “That’s when he went out of the game. He was feeling a little bit better. But his body will let us know. We’re doing treatment pretty much around the clock with all of these guys.”
Lowry reunion
Monday night’s game in Philadelphia on the second night of this back-to-back set will have the Heat facing Kyle Lowry for the first time since the veteran point guard was dealt in January to the Charlotte Hornets for Terry Rozier. Lowry subsequently was bought out by the Hornets and signed by his hometown 76ers.
Lowry’s statistics with the 76ers largely have mirrored his numbers with the Heat this season. He is playing 28.5 minutes per game in his 11 appearances with the 76ers, averaging 7.9 points on .412 shooting from the field and .349 shooting on 3-pointers, with 5.2 assists per game. In his 37 appearances with the Heat, he averaged 8.2 points on .426 shooting from the field and .385 shooting on 3-pointers, with 4.0 assists per game.
Lowry and the 76ers also are scheduled to visit Kaseya Center on April 4 to conclude the four-game season series.
The 76ers continue to play in the injury absence of center Joel Embiid, who underwent knee surgery on Feb. 6, with it uncertain whether he will return this season.
Asked if he believed Embiid would be back before the postseason, 76ers coach Nick Nurse said Saturday, “I’m still hoping so and pretty confident, yes.”
Embiid, who tore the meniscus in his left knee on Jan. 30, missed the teams’ first two meetings, a pair of Heat victories. The 76ers are 8-13 amid Embiid’s current absence.
Little relief
After the back-to-back set against the Pistons, the schedule largely is challenging for the Heat through the April 14 close of the regular season.
Starting Monday, the Heat’s next five games are against the teams with winning records, against the 76ers (37-30), Cleveland Cavaliers (42-25), New Orleans Pelicans (41-26), Cleveland Cavaliers again (42-25) and Golden State Warriors ((35-31).
In addition, the Heat also have games remaining against the New York Knicks (40-27), 76ers again (37-30) and Indiana Pacers (38-30).
