Heat's Jimmy Butler starts, says of future plans, 'I'm back' ESPN

MIAMI -- With his seven-game suspension over, Heat star Jimmy Butler was back in the starting lineup for Friday night's 133-113 home loss to the Denver Nuggets.

Butler, who was suspended for conduct detrimental to the team, played 33 minutes and had 18 points on 7-of-15 shooting along with three rebounds and two assists. It was his first game since the Heat confirmed he wants a trade and that they are trying to accommodate that request.

Head coach Erik Spoelstra announced Butler's return during his pregame media session, saying that the lineup of Butler, Bam Adebayo, Tyler Herro, Haywood Highsmith and Duncan Robinson "gives us the best chance tonight."

Earlier Friday, Butler channeled Michael Jordan's famous statement ahead of his return to the NBA in 1995, tweeting through his agent, Bernie Lee, "I'm back." Butler also posted several pictures of himself on his Instagram story wearing Jordan's No. 45 jersey, which the Bulls' legend wore during his return to the court.

Butler showed up for the Heat's pregame walk-through late Friday afternoon at Kaseya Center, sources told ESPN.

At his pregame session with reporters Friday, Spoelstra opened with a statement of more than a minute explaining the state of Butler's situation and repeatedly asked for only basketball questions.

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"We work in a league of complexity," Spoelstra said. "We're in an unusual place right now, but really all it is is complex, and we fully plan on operating within this complexity. It's my job to prepare this team and get it ready to play at a high level, and that's what I'm doing. That's what the plan is. My methods for doing it are really none of your business. You're all looking for drama, I'm looking for getting this team ready to play at a high level.

"And as far as silly questions like, 'What is the temperature of the room?' or 'How is everybody feeling?' that just sounds so dramatic. We're professionals, we're fine, we're ready for tonight's game, and that's the only thing that matters. We're looking forward to getting back on the wood. We've been on the road for a while, and we're complete, so we're looking forward to getting this thing tipped off."

When Spoelstra was asked if he believed this team could still perform while dealing with these complexities, he said, "Yeah, for sure. If I didn't believe that, I wouldn't be here right now, or in this position that I'm in."

The last time Miami used this starting lineup, in a 128-115 loss here to the Indiana Pacers on Jan. 2, Butler played 27 minutes, going for nine points and four assists before saying after the game that he wanted to "get his joy back" and that he didn't believe that could be done in Miami.

Sources told ESPN that the Heat would like to find a deal to accommodate Butler's wishes to send him elsewhere, but to this point, a deal that satisfies what Miami is looking for -- some combination of players that can help the Heat now, movable short-term salary, young players and draft capital -- hasn't materialized.