By ASSOCIATED PRESS
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Warriors star Jimmy Butler injured his right knee midway through the third quarter of a 135-112 win Monday night, Jan. 19, against his former Miami Heat team after he scored 17 points, a big blow for Golden State.
Tempers flared with some shoving between the reserves in the closing seconds.
Butler was hurt moments after catching a pass in the paint when he went down hard and awkwardly following a collision with the Heat’s Davion Mitchell — who was called for a foul at the 7:41 mark of the third.
The knee buckled upon his landing and Butler screamed, grimaced and grabbed at his knee while down for a couple of minutes. He needed teammates Gary Payton II and Buddy Hield to escort him off the court and to the locker room after the fall on the Warriors’ offensive end. When he finally got up with assistance, he was unable to put any pressure on his knee.
Andrew Wiggins had 18 points and five rebounds for Miami in his return to Chase Center, where he helped the Warriors win the 2022 NBA championship. Norman Powell had 21 points as the Heat kicked off a five-game West Coast trip and lost their fourth in a row away from home to drop to 7-14 overall outside South Florida.
Butler shot 6 for 11 after he sat out Saturday’s 136-116 win against Charlotte for personal reasons. Stephen Curry had 19 points and 11 assists, Brandin Podziemski scored a season-best 24 points to go with six rebounds and Hield added 16 points on a night Golden State was without Draymond Green because of a right ankle sprain as a precaution. He is expected back for Tuesday’s home matchup against Toronto.
The Warriors played on Martin Luther King Jr. Day for the 13th time in 14 seasons and second year in a row at home.
Meanwhile, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 30 points, Chet Holmgren added 28 and the Oklahoma City Thunder rolled to a 136-104 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
It is the 30th time in 42 games Gilgeous-Alexander has scored at least 30. The reigning NBA MVP is second in the league in scoring, averaging 31.8 points.
The Thunder — who improved to a league-best 36-8 — tied a season high with 23 3-pointers and made 48.9% from beyond the arc. Luguentz Dort made five 3’s and finished with 18 points, while Isaiah Joe (16 points) and Holmgren made four apiece.
It is Cleveland’s worst loss in a regular-season game in nearly two seasons since Kenny Atkinson became coach. The last time it lost by at least 30 was a 37-point defeat at Miami on March 24, 2024.
Earlier, Tobias Harris scored 25 points and Jaylen Brown missed a jumper just before the buzzer, allowing the Detroit Pistons to hold on for a 104-103 win over the Boston Celtics in a matchup of teams with the best records in the Eastern Conference.
Jalen Duren scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds, Cade Cunningham had 16 points and 14 assists and Duncan Robinson added 15 points for the Central Division-leading Pistons (31-10).
Brown had 32 points on 11-of-28 shooting for the Atlantic Division-leading Celtics (26-16).
Cunningham and Brown were named All-Star starters for the first time earlier Monday. Cunningham ranked first in votes by players, and Brown had the most votes from the media.
