SAN FRANCISCO - Jimmy Butler's tailbone is still injured at the end, despite his pain, has arrived in extraordinary ways and in various ways.

The Golden State star returned from an absence and rejoined the starting lineup Monday night to win a 109-106 first-round series against the Houston Rockets, with the Warriors winning 109-106 in Game 4, against the Houston Rockets, and sometimes he led his team to a win.

"The most important thing is that I want to play. It's the best time of the year for everyone, and that's why you're going through," Butler said. "So, to miss the game, I don't like it, but I'm back, I'm back."

Butler converted three free throws with just 58.7 seconds left, grabbed the game's rebound with four seconds, and then made two more free throws in the 40-minute game, and suffered a frightening fall in his second game last Wednesday in less than a week.

"Tonight was great. He played with the injury, and it was beautiful," said teammate Draymond Green. "But it was just his presence. His presence was huge for the team. For the first three quarters, he couldn't move. Not sure how he started moving in the fourth quarter, but he couldn't move for the first three quarters. But he never complained. He kept on."

Butler participated in the morning shooting earlier that day and just a successful warm-up could be considered good.

“I thought it was the time to win,” Butler said of his game, starting to “move a little better.”

Butler played for only more than five minutes in the initial game, and in a fierce second quarter, the skirmish was delayed twice in a fierce match, four technical fouls and a blatant 1 skirmish.

The team returned to Houston for Game 5 in seven games Wednesday night as the Seventh Seed Golden State tried to close the No. 2 seed Rockets on their home court.

The Warriors know how much Butler they will need if they want to play the playoffs.

"We have to have him. If it was the regular season, he might have missed another week or two," coach Steve Kerr said. "But it was the playoffs, he was Jimmy Butler, so that's what he did. The final rebound was incredible, elevation, of course the power to knock down free throws to win the championship. Jimmy was amazing."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.