Caron Butler was born and raised in Racine, Wisconsin, where he suffered through a rough childhood; he was a drug dealer at age 12 and arrested 15 times before the age of 15.
39 Facts About Caron Butler
2.
Caron Butler discovered his love for basketball while at a youth detention center.
3.
Caron Butler played in Amateur Athletic Union basketball in 1998 and 1999.
4.
At Connecticut, Caron Butler lost 15 pounds off his frame and developed his perimeter game.
5.
Caron Butler followed his spectacular freshman campaign with an even better sophomore season, averaging 20.3 points per game and 7.5 rebounds per game, leading the Huskies to both regular season and tournament Big East titles, and was named Big East tournament MVP.
6.
Caron Butler was named co-Big East player of the year and a second-team All-American.
7.
Caron Butler led the Huskies to the Elite 8 of the NCAA basketball tournament.
8.
Caron Butler was a lottery pick in the 2002 NBA draft, selected with the 10th overall pick by the rebuilding Miami Heat.
9.
Caron Butler's scoring average fell to 9.2 points game for the season, but Miami's balanced offense led by Wade, Odom and Eddie Jones propelled Miami into the playoffs.
10.
In game 7, Miami closed out the series with Caron Butler scoring 23 points with 9 rebounds.
11.
Caron Butler scored 21 points with 10 rebounds in the fourth game, but the Pacers responded to win the series in 6 games.
12.
Once again, the offseason meant Caron Butler would be shipped again, as the Lakers traded him and Chucky Atkins to the Washington Wizards for Kwame Brown and Laron Profit.
13.
Caron Butler became part of Washington's new "Big 3", a trio made up of teammates Gilbert Arenas and Antawn Jamison.
14.
Caron Butler was nicknamed "Tough Juice" by coach Eddie Jordan for his aggressive and passionate play, epitomized by Caron Butler's 20 rebounds in the Game 6 loss of opening-round series against LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.
15.
Caron Butler would have his best season yet, posting career high averages in rebounds, assists, and points.
16.
Caron Butler was named as a reserve to the 2007 NBA Eastern Conference All-Star team, his first appearance.
17.
Caron Butler, who was sidelined with a hip injury, was selected as a reserve for the East in the 2008 NBA All-Star Game in New Orleans, Louisiana but was forced to sit out.
18.
On February 13,2010 Caron Butler was traded to the Dallas Mavericks along with Brendan Haywood and Deshawn Stevenson for Josh Howard, Drew Gooden, James Singleton, and Quinton Ross.
19.
On December 9,2011, Caron Butler signed a three-year, $24 million deal with the Los Angeles Clippers.
20.
On July 10,2013, Caron Butler was traded to the Phoenix Suns alongside Eric Bledsoe in a three-way trade that had both Jared Dudley from the Suns and JJ Redick from the Milwaukee Bucks join the Clippers and two different second round picks being sent to the Bucks.
21.
On February 27,2014, Caron Butler was bought out of his contract by the Bucks, and in 34 games, he averaged 11.0 points per game.
22.
On March 1,2014, Caron Butler signed with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
23.
Caron Butler finished the season having played in 22 regular season games and 17 playoff games for the Thunder, as they qualified for the Western Conference Finals where they were defeated by the San Antonio Spurs.
24.
On July 15,2014, Caron Butler signed with the Detroit Pistons to a reported two-year, $9 million contract.
25.
On June 11,2015, Caron Butler was traded, along with Shawne Williams, to the Milwaukee Bucks in exchange for Ersan Ilyasova.
26.
On July 23,2015, Caron Butler signed with the Sacramento Kings.
27.
In 2015, Caron Butler released an autobiography entitled Tuff Juice: My Journey from the Streets to the NBA.
28.
Caron Butler owns a team in the newly developed league known as the Wisconsin Cheeseheads.
29.
Also in 2017, Caron Butler joined ESPN as full-time college basketball and NBA analyst.
30.
Caron Butler began taking his interest in basketball seriously when he looked out his window at a basketball court at Ethan Allen Juvenile Detention.
31.
Caron Butler has a habit of chewing on straws, which he picked up back in AAU ball in 1998 or 1999.
32.
Caron Butler said he drank about six 12 ounce sodas a day and would wake up in the middle of the night to have one.
33.
Caron Butler has stated that he still struggles with his addiction to this day.
34.
Caron Butler attended a surprise birthday party for Anthony Fadel, a 16-year-old in the Washington, DC area when invited by the boy's family.
35.
Caron Butler has taken Business Management classes at Duke University.
36.
Caron Butler's father left him when he was born to join the Marines.
37.
Caron Butler's mother married Melvin and he has younger brother Melvin III.
38.
Caron and Andrea Pink Butler met at UConn's pre college summer program.
39.
Caron Butler has a daughter and son from a previous relationship.