Warriors' Jimmy Butler Reportedly Expected to Make Injury Return vs. Rockets in Game 4

The Golden State Warriors are expected to get Playoff Jimmy back for Game 4 of their Western Conference playoffs matchup against the Houston Rockets on Monday night.

NBA Insider Chris Haynes reported the latest on Jimmy Butler:

ESPN's Shams Charania first reported on SportsCenter that Butler "participated in shootaround today. He's doing everything in his power to play tonight in Game 4. He's doing treatments, started on-court workouts over the last 24 hours. The sense I get is that the Warriors and Butler are both aiming—and somewhat expecting—for him to make his return tonight in Game 4. It's all about getting his mobility back."

Butler took a nasty fall in Game 2 while going up for a rebound, suffering a deep glute muscle contusion. He didn't return in Game 2 and missed Game 3 on Saturday.

The Dubs dropped Game 2 but managed to pull out a win on Saturday, 104-93, behind Stephen Curry's 36 points and nine assists. That gave Golden State a 2-1 lead in the series.

"We had Jimmy's back while he was out," Gary Payton II, who scored 16 points off the bench in Game 3, told reporters after the win. "Hopefully, we get Jimmy back for Game 4 and we get back to our regular scheduled program."

The Warriors certainly gained some swagger after picking up a win without the self-described Robin to Curry's Batman.

"I think for us psychologically, it just kind of reconfirms to ourselves that we can do it, that we're capable of making any adjustment," Warriors forward/center Draymond Green told reporters about getting the win without Butler.

"It gives us confidence to know we can win a game down Jimmy," head coach Steve Kerr added. "A lot of guys stepped up. So I'd assume when they come back in this building on Monday they're going to feel better about themselves and better about the team."

Still, the Warriors are a much better team with Butler on the floor, so his health will be a key factor if they are going to make a deep run this postseason. Luckily for Golden State, it sounds as though his absence is coming to a close as the team looks to take a stranglehold on its first-round series against Houston.