The Golden State Warriors won their fourth-straight game in the same way: a good old-fashioned blowout. Even though they were missing Draymond Green, De'Anthony Melton, and Gui Santos, the Warriors made 24 threes en route to tying an NBA record with their fourth-straight game making 20+ three-pointers, eventually coming away with a 135-112 win over the Miami Heat.

However, though the win would normally call for celebration, the energy and attention instead shifted onto one player: Jimmy Butler.

At the 7:41 mark of the third quarter, Brandin Podziemski threw an entry pass to Butler that was slightly off-target, causing Butler to jump to grab the pass. As he landed, he came down with all of his weight on his right leg, causing it to buckle. Butler fell to the floor and immediately clutched at his right knee in obvious pain.

After a few minutes on the floor and getting checked by the trainers, Butler left the court with the help of his teammates, unable to put any weight on that right knee. Butler was ruled out from returning almost immediately.

It was announced by Warriors PR after the game that Butler is receiving an MRI scan on his right knee, and that the results would likely come back on Tuesday.

After the game, Steph Curry laid out his thoughts on the situation, keeping it simple.

"Praying for the best, obviously, as far as scans and all that. We'll figure it out, but hopefully he's alright."

Butler did injure that same knee with an MCL sprain in 2024 when he was with the Heat. Even if this one turns out not to be a serious injury, the Warriors will be sure to be careful with him, considering that injury and his age.

Prior to his injury, Butler had scored 17 points in 21 minutes against his former team, but it was really after he left the game that the Warriors put things out of reach for the Heat.

They extended a 4-point halftime lead to 11 with a 34-27 third quarter, then dominated the fourth quarter, 31-19, to make it a blowout.

Six other players besides Butler scored in double figures, including Podziemski, who led the team with 24 points. Buddy Hield filled in admirably for both the injured Melton and for Butler with 16 points and 4 triples, while Curry clocked in as the second-leading scorer with 19 points and tied his season-high with 11 assists.

The Warriors' shooting and overall play have been spectacular, to say the least, as this win marks their fourth in a row and 12th win in the last 16 games. That's why the Butler injury holds so much weight, as things have just started to click for the Warriors. It would be an extremely difficult loss if their second-best player is forced to miss weeks, let alone months or even the rest of the season if the injury is the worst-case scenario.

For now, all the Warriors can do is wait and hope for a positive update while preparing for the second leg of the back-to-back against the Toronto Raptors on Tuesday night.