Today, Jimmy Butler is known as the leader of the Miami Heat and one of the best two-way players in the NBA. But, not so long ago, not many people thought he could make it, and I don’t mean just in the league.
Born in a small town in Texas, Butler didn’t even have a place to live growing up. His mom kicked him out at the ripe age of 13 years old and was set up to fail more often than not. Then, the warm heart of a friend’s family changed it all.
They took Butler in and, even though he didn’t get much attention from college scouts, he still found the way to beat the odds every single time, being taken by the Chicago Bulls with the 30th overall pick.
Butler’s Mom Didn’t Want To Look At Him Anymore
(Transcript via ESPN)
“I don’t like the look of you. You gotta go.”
Those were the last words Jimmy Butler says he remembers his mother saying to him before, according to his recollection, she kicked him to the curb.
He was 13 years old. There was no family to run to. No place to call home. No money in his pocket.
Most kids his age are concerned with school, sports, girls. Butler was just trying to survive. Alone.”
But even despite all the things he had to overcome, Butler still doesn’t feel sorry for himself, nor he wants anybody else to feel that way. If anything, he’s grateful for the way that shaped him:
“Please, I know you’re going to write something. I’m just asking you, don’t write it in a way that makes people feel sorry for me,” he told Chad Ford of ESPN. “I hate that. There’s nothing to feel sorry about. I love what happened to me. It made me who I am. I’m grateful for the challenges I’ve faced. Please, don’t make them feel sorry for me.”
Props to Butler for the way he approached life and how his relentless work ethic made him the successful NBA player he is nowadays. Not many people would’ve had the mental strength, the morals, the work ethic, the talent, and the luck to achieve that.