Jimmy Butler does not appear in All-Star Game
By Ben Beecken
Strangely, Timberwolves All-Star Jimmy Butler did not see the court on Sunday night as Team Stephen fell to Team LeBron down the stretch.
If you’ve paid any attention to Jimmy Butler’s comments regarding the All-Star Game over the past few weeks, then perhaps it’s not a surprise that he didn’t appear in the contest on Sunday in Los Angeles.
While it would be a bit odd, and perhaps unprecedented, for a player to simply not play because they didn’t want to in the All-Star Game, the real reason for Butler’s absence is anyone’s guess.
TNT’s David Aldridge reported on the air shortly after halftime that Butler was “under the weather” and may only play limited minutes, if at all. Then there was this from NBC SportsChicago reporter Vincent Goodwill:
Jimmy Butler didn't play in the first half for Team Steph. "He's okay, just tired," someone close to him said.
— Vincent Goodwill (@VinceGoodwill) February 19, 2018
According to ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne, Butler actually told D’Antoni not to worry about finding him minutes to play.
Jimmy Butler is the only All Star who hasn’t played yet. He says he’s fine, so this is just a rest thing. He told D’Antoni not to worry about playing time or getting him into the rotations.
— Ramona Shelburne (@ramonashelburne) February 19, 2018
Of course, there are plenty of assumptions floating around the Twittersphere regarding the L.A./All-Star Weekend nightlife, but Butler isn’t exactly known to be a party animal.
The most likely scenario? Butler is surely under the weather in some capacity; he seems to be the type of player that would respect the game enough to simply not play by choice. There are plenty of Tom Thibodeau/rest-related jokes out there, of course, but that seems somewhat far-fetched.
Butler played 19 minutes last year for the Eastern Conference, scoring six points on four shots. Two years ago, he missed the game due to injury. And in his first ever All-Star appearance, back in 2015, he played just nine minutes.
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We’ll see if Butler has anything to say postgame or as the team begins to return to Minneapolis towards the middle of the week, but don’t expect there to be too much that comes out about his absence on Sunday night in L.A.
(UPDATE: Butler confirmed that he wanted a “rest night” and that he is prioritizing the stretch run of the season. Here’s the direct quote.)