Is Jimmy Butler playing tonight against Dallas Mavericks? Latest on Heat star's status (April 10)

Jimmy Butler will play against the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night despite the Miami Heat playing on the second night of a back-to-back. Butler has missed 23 games this season but has been relatively healthy since March. He has appeared in 17 of the team's 20 games since then, averaging 20.4 points, 4.9 rebounds and 5.6 assists on 47.8% shooting.

The Heat are fighting for a top-six spot in the Eastern Conference. They are eighth with a 44-35 record, one game behind the seventh-placed 45-35 Philadelphia 76ers.

Every game and result holds significant ramifications for the Heat's quest to finish above the play-in tournament spots, which could see Butler and the other core players avoid resting for the remaining games.

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What happened to Jimmy Butler?

Butler has dealt with five ailments to his head, knee, foot, ankle and calf this season. His most recent injury absence was because of a foot contusion. He missed consecutive games on March 17 and March 18 against the Detroit Pistons and Philadelphia 76ers. Butler missed another game after that on March 27, but it was due to a non-COVID-19 illness. He hasn't been carrying any injuries since then.

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Jimmy Butler Stats vs. Dallas Mavericks

Jimmy Butler had played 18 games against the Dallas Mavericks, averaging 17.9 ppg, 6.0 rpg and 5.4 apg, winning 10 times. Butler produced his best outing against the Mavericks on Apr. 1, 2023, tallying 35 points and 12 assists on 12-of-16 shooting in a 129-122 home win.

He had a forgettable game when the teams met earlier this season, as he managed only 14 points, four rebounds and five assists on 6-of-12 shooting in a 114-108 loss on March 7.

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Jimmy Butler accepts play-in tournament possibility

Jimmy Butler is seemingly unconcerned about playing another play-in tournament to get to the playoffs. After the team's 117-115 loss to the sixth-placed Indiana Pacers on Sunday, Butler said that the Heat have never made it easy on themselves, frequently playing through adversity.

The Miami Heat have played in the play-in tournament twice in the past three years. They could be in it for the second consecutive year and third time overall. The Heat got out of it on both occasions and made the playoffs. They were the seventh seed in 2021 and the eighth in 2023.

While 2021 ended in a first-round sweep, the Heat went on a historic run to the finals in 2023 as the eighth seed, beating the league-best Milwaukee Bucks 4-1 in the first round, New York Knicks 4-2 in the conference semis and title favorites Boston Celtics 4-3 in the conference finals after taking a 3-0 lead.