Jimmy Butler & 4 other players suspended by NBA for altercation during Heat vs Pelicans: Details of players & suspension period revealed

On Thursday night, Jimmy Butler was part of scuffle with Naji Marshall following the Miami Heat's win over the New Orleans Pelicans. The NBA recently announced the punishments from this altercation.

Per a press release from the league office, Jimmy Butler and Naji Marshall have each been suspended one game without pay for their on-court fight. Along with this, Thomas Bryant and Jose Alverado have each been suspended three games.

They both broke a league rule by leaving the bench and getting on the court to engage in the fight. Nikola Jovic has also been assesed a one-game suspension for leaving the bench and storming the court.

The incident began late in the fourth quarter, when Kevin Love committed a foul on Zion Williamson. This led to Butler and Marshall getting into it, which eventually escalated into a bigger fight between both teams.

In the end, the Heat won by a score of 106-95. Jimmy Butler finished the game with 23 points, nine rebounds, six assists, three steals and one block.

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When will Jimmy Butler return to the lineup for the Miami Heat?

After being given this suspension, Butler is expected to serve it on Monday night. The Miami Heat are slated to take on the Sacramento Kings.

Following this matchup, Jimmy Butler is expected to make his return to action. The next time the Heat play after Monday is the following night. It is the second leg of a back-to-back, taking on the Portland Trail Blazers.

Miami will have their hands full on Monday without the services of Butler. The Kings are trying to climb the Western Conference standings in this final stretch of the regular season. Currently, they sit in seventh place with a 32-23 record.

The Heat are used to playing without Butler, as he has missed a sizable amount of games this season. Before the matchup with the New Orleans Pelicans, he had miss the previous three matchups. In that stretch, they managed to pick up wins over the Philadelphia 76ers and Milwaukee Bucks.

Missed time aside, Butler is still playing at an All-Star level. In the 38 games he's appeared in, 34-year-old is averaging 21.4 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.6 assists.

Looking at the standings, Miami still has a chance to move up the standings in these final weeks of the season. They find themselves in eighth place now, but are within strikning distance of the Indiana Pacers and Orlando Magic.

Due to these suspensions, the Heat will not find themselves heavily shorthanded as they prepare to take on the Kings.