Butler officially active, will play in Warriors' Game 4 vs. Rockets

Butler officially active, will play in Warriors’ Game 4 vs. Rockets originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Robin is back.

Jimmy Butler officially is listed as active for the Warriors’ Game 4 matchup with the Houston Rockets on Monday at Chase Center — good news for Golden State as it seeks a three-games-to-one series lead in the first-round NBA playoff series.

Butler will start Monday’s game along with Steph Curry, Brandin Podziemski, Draymond Green and surprise addition Buddy Hield, who scored 17 points in the Warriors’ Game 3 win. Hield’s last start was Feb. 12 against the Mavericks in Dallas, and Monday marks his first career playoff start.

Butler sustained a left pelvic injury in the first quarter of the Warriors’ Game 2 loss to the Rockets on Wednesday night after Houston guard Amen Thompson undercut him as he went up for a rebound.

Butler was ruled out for Game 3 on Saturday about an hour before tip-off, but Golden State was able to pull off a pivotal 104-93 victory thanks largely in part to Butler’s Batman counterpart Curry and his 36 points.

But Butler’s return certainly is a welcome sight for Golden State, after the team’s stellar midseason acquisition scored 25 points on 10-of-19 shooting with seven rebounds, six assists and five steals in 42 minutes during the Warriors’ Game 1 win.

The six-time NBA All-Star forward initially was listed as questionable for Monday’s game, but the extra rest appears to have served Butler well. Warriors coach Steve Kerr said pregame that Butler wouldn’t be on a minutes restriction if he suited up, and ESPN’s Shams Charania reported earlier in the day that Butler did “everything in his power” to return for Game 4.

“Jimmy Butler is doing everything possible to try and play tonight in Game 4,” Charania said on “NBA Today.” “Everything in his power, he’s been doing treatment, workouts on the court over the last 24 hours. And then today, he was a full participant at shootaround. …

“He just was not moving well enough to play [on Saturday]. The Warriors doctors ruled him out. So he may not be 100 percent tonight, but he does want to play.”

Mission accomplished. Now, Butler will do all he can to help the Warriors head back to Houston with a chance to advance to the Western Conference semifinals.

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Butler officially active, will play in Warriors’ Game 4 vs. Rockets

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