Jimmy Butler leaves Heat vs. Nuggets with sprained ankle injury | News, results, highlights, statistics and rumors

Miami Heat star Jimmy Butler was forced out of Friday’s game against the Denver Nuggets after suffering a sprained right ankle, according to the team’s Anthony Chiang Miami Herald.

Butler slipped while driving to the basket in the first quarter, abandoned the game and immediately entered the Miami locker room.

He scored two points and two assists while hitting one of his two field goal attempts before exiting the contest.

Although Butler’s availability has been inconsistent in recent years, he appeared in all eight of Miami’s regular season games before his ankle injury against the Nuggets.

The 35-year-old played in just 60 games last season and missed the team’s first-round playoff loss to the Boston Celtics due to a right MCL issue. Butler hasn’t appeared in more than 64 contests in a year since joining the Heat and hasn’t played in more than 70 games since his 2016-17 season with the Chicago Bulls.

He entered Friday averaging 18.1 points, 5.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game while shooting 47.7 percent from the field and 16.7 percent from three.

The Heat didn’t get off to a good start this season at 3-4.

Still, Butler’s presence is crucial to Miami’s success on both ends of the floor. While he’s out, head coach Erik Spoelstra will rely on Bam Adebayo to keep the Heat’s offense going while continuing to bolster their defense.

Haywood Highsmith is a leading candidate to replace Butler in Miami’s starting lineup if he is forced to miss time, especially after the 27-year-old scored a season-high 19 points on Wednesday against the Phoenix Suns.

Butler’s future status should become clearer after Friday night’s contest.