Jimmy Butler to see Dr. James Andrews regarding knee pain

Plagued by swelling and a mysterious pain in his left knee, the Chicago Bulls will have shooting guard Jimmy Butler visit Dr. James Andrews for a second opinion.

Butler's appointment in Pensacola, Fla. is first thing Thursday morning. As a result, Butler will be out Thursday against the San Antonio Spurs, reports K.C. Johnson of the Chicago Tribune.

The 26-year-old Butler suffered a knee injury in early February which sidelined him for a game. However, the Bulls allowed him to play through it two nights later, which is when Butler re-injured his knee on a drive to the hoop against the Denver Nuggets. He would leave that game in a wheelchair.

After the second injury, Butler sat out a month before returning over the weekend to face the Houston Rockets. Despite just coming off injury, Butler drew the impossible task of checking James Harden and wasn't held to a minutes limit. He would end up playing 34 minutes - four off his league-leading average of 37.8 - before fouling out.

Two days later, Butler experienced swelling in the same knee so he sat out Monday against the Milwaukee Bucks, although reports Tuesday suggested his condition was improving.

The two-time All-Star is Chicago's best player, and leads the team in scoring with 22.4 points per game along with 5.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists. The Bulls are 5-9 in Butler's absence.

Entering Wednesday, Chicago sits a half-game up on the Detroit Pistons for the eighth seed.