Tuff Juice: My Journey from the Streets to the NBA

by Caron Butler, Steve Springer, Kobe Bryant (Foreword by)

Overview

Two-time All-Star and thirteen-year NBA veteran Caron Butler has an impressive basketball record. He was Big East Co-Player of the Year at UConn, the 10th overall pick of the 2002 NBA Draft and a key player for the Dallas Mavericks in their championship-winning season in 2011. But before Butler had a chance to prove himself on the court, he spent his time trying to prove himself on the streets, as a gang member and drug dealer in his hometown of Racine, Wisconsin. He saw friends gunned down in the bloody street wars near his home, was arrested nearly 15 times and wound up behind bars and in solitary confinement before his 15th birthday.   Tuff Juice shares Caron Butler’s extraordinary journey from his delinquent youth in the streets of Racine to his role as an accomplished pro basketball player, dedicated husband and father, active philanthropist and burgeoning businessman. Along the way, the book explores the incredible impact his single mother’s unconditional love and his college coach’s unwavering support had on him, and what drives him to be so successful in basketball and in life.  Like The Blind Side, it’s a gripping narrative filled with hubris, dangerous obstacles and heartwarming moments that transcend sports and speak to perseverance, hope and the triumph of the human spirit.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781493011421
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	10/07/2015
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Caron Butler is a veteran NBA All-Star and a dedicated member of the community. He is extremely active with organizations that specialize in youth outreach, especially in his hometown of Racine, Wisconsin. In addition to his extensive philanthropy Butler is also a burgeoning businessman with plans to own an NBA team in the future. He lives in Beverly Hills, California. Steve Springer is the author and co-author of twelve books including a New York Times Bestseller, American Son: My Story—'scar De La Hoya’s autobiography—and two Los Angeles Times Bestsellers. He lives in Woodland Hills, California.

Table of Contents

Foreword vii

Chapter 1 My D-Day: A Dark journey Ends, a Bright Future Beckons 1

Chapter 2 My Roots: The Cotton Fields of Mississippi 8

Chapter 3 My Grandma: Breaking Barriers and Dodging Bullets 15

Chapter 4 My Mom: The Woman They Called Overtime 20

Chapter 5 My Drug-Dealing Days: From Crumbs to Kangols 31

Chapter 6 My Life on the Streets: Death at Every Corner 49

Chapter 7 My Uncles: Survivors from the South Side 68

Chapter 8 My Game: Shooting Hoops, Aiming for the Stars 80

Chapter 9 My Arrest: Smoking Gun, Smoking Station Wagon 95

Chapter 10 My Time in the Hole: Just Me, My Bible, and Mandela 103

Chapter 11 After My Release: Shooting Hoops, Shooting Myself 123

Chapter 12 My Second Chance: The Crossroads of My Life 136

Chapter 13 My Time with Mad Max: Gentry, MCI, and a Whole New World 150

Chapter 14 College: UConn and Andrea, the Love of My Life 164

Chapter 15 My Years in the NBA: Riles, Kobe, K.D., and Gunplay in the Locker Room 187

Epilogue 220

Afterword for the 2016 Edition 227

Acknowledgments 233

Index 237

About the Coauthors 245

Editorial Reviews

10/05/2015
If America loves redeemed bad guys with skills, this blood-and-guts memoir by NBA basketball star Butler should satisfy that appetite for granting second chances. Supported by a glowing foreword by L.A. Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, the Racine, Wis. native shares his journey from the glittering night of the 2002 NBA Draft and his selection as the overall 10th pick by the Miami Heat to flashbacks of his youthful drug dealing, shootouts, numerous arrests, and harsh confinement. Butler puts family first with a strong, affirming narrative about his clan's Mississippi roots to his mother's unrelenting support and his sport mentors fighting for his dream of pro ball. An editorial decision sadly yields only a small portion of the book's content to Butler's 12-year pro basketball career culminating as a key player on Dallas Mavericks' championship team in 2011, opting to stress the glut of street outlaw chapters. While Butler's sports memoir suffers from this literary imbalance, it provides a bold, candid opportunity to appreciate a talented, complicated athlete. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

Caron is an unbelievable role model, someone who got into trouble when he was young, then turned his life around and set a shining example for others. Everybody who meets him, myself included, walks away in awe. When he was traded from the Heat, I felt like I was losing a brother. Young kids who read this book will learn that, though they will make mistakes in life, the most important thing is how they respond to their troubles. Caron responded in a manner that inspires all who know him.” —Dwyane Wade, guard for the Miami Heat

“This story is as good, as dramatic, and as inspirational as any I’ve dealt with in my professional career. Caron Butler should be applauded for turning his life around, for morphing into a role model, and for sharing his story so that others might learn from his example. This is not a basketball book as much as it is a book about life, a life of transformation and redemption.” —Mark Wahlberg, Producer/Actor    

“Caron Butler was one of the greatest players who ever wore a Heat uniform. Had we not needed to include him in a deal to get Shaquille O’Neal, Caron would have been here for the rest of his career. We considered him that good, someone who had Heat DNA, the qualities we always look for: great integrity, character and toughness, an ultra-competitor. It was very sad for me to see Caron go, but it’s made me very happy to know that he has written a book and wanted his old coach to be included in it.” —Pat Riley, former coach and current President of Basketball Operations for the Miami Heat                 

From the Publisher