Heat star Jimmy Butler was kicked out of home at 13 – now he’s in the NBA Finals

At 33-years-old, Jimmy Butler will walk out onto the court for the NBA finals in search for his first championship – at 13 he walked out onto the streets in search for shelter.

The Miami Heat star was wandering around the streets, asking his friends for accommodation, before he was even old enough to go to high school. It was a cruel, painful, and vulnerable time for the Houston native, who will be key in the NBA finals against Denver Nuggets.

Childhood was far from a happy time. His mother has to deal with the responsibility of raising him single handedly after his father abandoned the family.

Twelve years after his father walked out his own mother held open the door and told him to leave. That moment would be etched on his memory forever.

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In a 2011 interview, Butler detailed the exact, ice-cold words his mother dished out to him when she ushered him away from their family home. “I don’t like the look of you. You gotta go,” he said to ESPN.

Aside from aspiring architects, roofs do not tend to be anything US teenagers think about when they are in those vital years. But when you are left without one over your head, other thoughts that may have been creeping into his mind – basketball, school, girls – pale into insignificance.

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Fortunately, he managed to find just that. After bouncing between various homes, he eventually met Jordan Leslie, a football and basketball freshman at the time. Leslie issued him a challenge. It may have been the turning point in his life and his career – a simple three point contest.

A friendship was born and a space for Butler in Leslie’s vast family opened up. Leslie’s mother, who already had seven children, allowed him to move in with the family. Fast forward to the present day, you would not blame him for feeling aggrieved. However, you will not find him looking for tiny violins or sympathy.

“There’s nothing to feel sorry about,” he also said to ESPN. “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.”

In a strange way it is very hard to argue with Butler. His career highlights read more like a litany. Six NBA All-Star inclusions, one MVP award in the Eastern Conference Finals, five NBA All-Defensive Second Team inclusions, the 2015 NBA most improved player, the list goes on.

But the big one, the NBA world championship, has evaded him all this time. Not that he is deterred. “It’s [his early experience] taught me anything is possible. My whole life, people have doubted me.

“My mom did. People told me in high school I’m too short and not fast enough to play basketball. They didn’t know my story. Because if they did, they’d know that anything is possible. “Who would’ve thought that a small-town kid would become a halfway decent player in college and now has a chance to be drafted in the NBA? That’s my chip. That’s what motivates me. I know I can overcome anything if I just take everything one day [at a] time.”