Warriors, Heat Will Be Without Key Players for Monday's Game

The Golden State Warriors (24-19) will be without their best bench player against the Miami Heat (22-20) on Monday.

De'Anthony Melton will sit out the front end of a back-to-back, which is part of the plan to keep him healthy following missing more than a year with an ACL injury. Gui Santos will miss his second consecutive game with an ankle sprain.

Meanwhile, Tyler Herro is also out for Monday's game with a rib contusion.

Jimmy Butler is not listed on the injury report. He missed Saturday's win over the Charlotte Hornets due to personal reasons, but he'll be back to play his former team Monday.

Butler's Second Game Against Heat Since Trade

This one might mean more for Butler.

The six-time All-Star demanded a trade from the Heat last season, and it was granted in February when the Warriors acquired him for a package led by Andrew Wiggins and a 2025 first-round pick.

The Heat got their revenge in a March home game with Stephen Curry not playing. Miami won 112-86, holding Butler to just 11 points.

Butler has been particularly excellent recently, averaging 23.0 points on 60.3 percent shooting over his last four games.

Expect him to have a big game.

Heat Are Dangerous Even Without Herro

The Heat are coming off a dramatic 122-120 win over the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday, and Herro did not play in that game.

They still knocked off the defending champs, with Andrew Wiggins nailing the game-winning three with 31 seconds left.

Norman Powell (23.8 PPG), Bam Adebayo (17.4), Jaime Jaquez Jr. (15.9) and Wiggins (15.8) are capable of big scoring outputs.

The Heat are coming off a 2-1 homestand, but it should be noted that they are just 7-13 on the road.

Warriors Offense Having Its Best Stretch of Season

The Warriors have been shooting the lights out the last three games.

The SF Standard's Danny Emerman pointed out that the Warriors became the first team to have at least 10 players make a three-pointer in three consecutive game. He added that the Warriors set a franchise record with 20-plus threes in three consecutive games.

Not surprisingly, the Warriors have the No. 1 offensive efficiency over the last two weeks, per Cleaning the Glass.

Interestingly, Stephen Curry is averaging just 16.0 points over that three-game stretch and shooting just 32.0 percent from three.

But finally the Warriors' role players are taking advantage of defenses leaving players wide open to make sure Curry doesn't get going.