Miami Heat’s Jimmy Butler exits early against Golden State Warriors with ankle injury

SAN FRANCISCO — Miami Heat forward Jimmy Butler injured his right ankle late in the third quarter against the Golden State Warriors and will be evaluated on Tuesday.

“He turned it,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said after the Warriors beat the Heat 115-108. “If you talk to Jimmy right now, he says he’s fine.

“We will have to evaluate it and see how he feels.”

Butler sustained the injury when he went to plant his right foot on a move but also appeared to lose his footing. He fell to the floor while holding the ball and was in pain as play was stopped with 3:14 left in the third quarter.

Miami took a timeout, and Butler had to be helped off the floor by two Heat members as he was unable to put any weight on the ankle.

Butler has had issues with his right ankle this season. He missed three games in November due to a right ankle sprain. And he turned his right ankle in a game against Washington on Dec. 28. He was ruled out against San Antonio in a Dec. 29 game that was eventually postponed.

Butler had 22 points and five rebounds before his latest ankle injury. The Heat star has missed 15 games this season because of injuries. He missed four games from Nov. 29 to Dec. 4 due to a tailbone injury. He returned for one game and then banged his tailbone again, forcing him to miss eight straight games in December.