Heat's Jimmy Butler Out for NBA Playoffs Game 2 vs. Knicks with Ankle Injury

The Miami Heat will attempt to seize a commanding 2-0 lead in their second-round playoff series against the New York Knicks without their star player.

Miami ruled Jimmy Butler out because of the ankle injury he suffered in the fourth quarter of Game 1. While he remained in the game, it was clear he was dealing with a lot of pain and was used more as a decoy than anything else.

While this is a difficult blow for a Miami team already without Tyler Herro, holding Butler out for Game 2 makes sense.

It already stole home-court advantage for the series with its victory in Game 1, and Game 3 in Miami isn't until Saturday. This gives the six-time All-Star five full days of rest between when he suffered the injury and when he will presumably take the court again when the series shifts locations.

The Heat simply don't have the firepower to realistically challenge for an NBA championship if he were to suffer a setback and be out for the playoffs.

After all, he has been unstoppable this postseason, averaging 37.6 points per game during the first round as his team upset the top-seeded Milwaukee Bucks. He poured in 56 points in Game 4 and 42 points in Game 5, even though he was facing some of the best defensive players in the league in Jrue Holiday, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Brook Lopez.

Butler remained effective in Game 1 against the Knicks prior to the setback and finished with a double-double of 25 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and two steals.

Competing in Game 2 without Butler and Herro will be a daunting challenge for the Heat. They were the team's leading and third-leading scorers during the regular season, and their absence will allow New York to send more double teams at Bam Adebayo.

It will be up to players such as Kyle Lowry, Gabe Vincent, Kevin Love and Caleb Martin to take advantage of any additional spacing that could come with those double teams if the Heat are going to take Game 2 in Madison Square Garden as well.