The Chicago Bulls have tried to downplay the severity of Jimmy Butler's knee injury. Originally ruled a strain, Butler returned to the court and was then taken off it following a setback to the issue. MRI's have come back clean, but Butler is still dealing with swelling and pain. As a result, he is now being forced to get a second opinion and visiting the one guy every sports fan hates, Dr. James Andrews.
Butler will be held out of Thursday's game against San Antonio Spurs as he makes a visit to Andrews in Alabama. Athletes who visit the acclaimed surgeon normally have injuries more serious than expected. Andrews has repaired more ACL tears than he can count, and now Butler is seeking his help to determine just how bad his knee injury might be. Head coach Fred Hoiberg tried to downplay the visit, but there is lingering concern.
"Everybody agrees that it's a good idea to go down there and just get an opinion from one of the top doctors in the world," Hoiberg said. "We'll hopefully get some news and then confer with everybody and get a plan together."
Hoiberg was quick to say that the swelling is down in Butler's knee and he is structurally sound after another MRI. He is confident that the swingman can make it back sooner rather than later, and that this second opinion is just to cover all of the bases and make sure everything else is ruled out. Hoiberg faced some criticism for putting Butler in the game on Saturday against the Houston Rockets. The head coach stressed the team doctors felt good about Butler and the swingman was fine when they checked on him during timeouts.
"You take the necessary steps leading into a game and with Jimmy, he had been going hard two weeks," Hoiberg said. "We wanted to get him to a point where he was comfortable just playing and not reacting. ... We checked on Jimmy at every timeout. We got him out with about four minutes left in the first quarter; we held him out until the second. He felt great. He went back in and responded all game long."
Depending on the news that comes out of Alabama, the Bulls could be faced with a decision of whether or not to sit Butler for a lengthy period of time. Right now, Chicago is teetering on the edge of the NBA playoffs as they hold on to the No. 8 seed in the standings. Butler will be the X factor in getting the Bulls back into the postseason and playing with success.
If there is doubt around his knee, sitting him could be the best long-term fix for Chicago. It might hurt this season, but if the Bulls start to fall in the playoff standings, keeping Butler out and getting him healthy is the better move. It will not be popular, but it might help in seasons to come.
