He entered the NBA as a late second-round draft pick in 2002 and quickly lit up the Miami Heat locker room with his upbeat nature and eagerness to prove he belonged.
Even despite playing alongside Dwyane Wade, Shaquille O’Neal, and Lamar Odom, Rasual Butler made his imprint with the Heat as a player who stood out on the court for his drive and in the locker room for his upbeat attitude.
Butler and his wife, Leah LaBelle, were killed Wednesday in a single-car accident in Studio City, California.
Butler was 38.
“It’s horrible, horrible news for all of us,” Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said before Wednesday night’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena. “We can’t believe… he’s one of our favorite people to come through the organization.” We drafted him, and it felt like he had been with us for a decade, although it was just a few years. But we all stayed in touch with him.
“That million-dollar smile, his attitude was infectious, always the brightest light coming through the gym every single day, regardless of what was going on during the season.” According to CBS Los Angeles, “according to Los Angeles police, at around 2:30 a.m., an SUV carrying two people was traveling down the 11200 block of Ventura Boulevard when it lost control, hit three parking meters and a retaining wall and landed in the parking lot of a strip mall.”
Forward Udonis Haslem is the Heat’s last remaining player from Butler’s era.
“I immediately took to Rasual when I got here,” he stated. “Another competitor, just like me, courageous. We just hang out a lot.
Obviously, Dwyane was married during our first year, so I had to spend late nights with somebody. Rasual was my running partner. “We had a great time together.”
Pat Riley, Heat president, issued a statement.
“This is beyond a sad day for the Miami Heat family,” Riley stated. “The deaths of Rasual Butler and his wife, Leah, are terrible. Rasual was one of the best players we’ve ever had; he was also a fantastic teammate and a greater guy.
“It’s always hard to cope with losing those you shared your life with, but we feel blessed to have had such a bright light shine in all of our lives.”
Butler competed competitively as part of the Big 3 halfcourt league of former NBA players until this past offseason.
Wade, who spent his first two NBA seasons alongside Butler, wrote, “Come on, man. Damn. The world just lost a fantastic guy. “RIP, Rasual ‘Bop’ Butler!”
Butler was known in the Heat locker room as ‘Sual-bop.
Wade shared a tale from his time with Butler on Instagram.
“This was my first public appearance, and I was nervous to go along — so ‘Sual joined to make it easier on me,” Wade wrote with a photo of the pair. “That’s who he was—a wonderful person who was always there for others when they needed him. “Today is a sad day.”
Heat guard Wayne Ellington, a native of Philadelphia, took the news hard.
“This one hurt my heart,” Ellington wrote. “At a loss for words. Rasual passed away. I’m praying for your family. “A Philadelphia basketball legend and role model.”
Posted sidelined Heat guard Dion Waiters, another Philadelphia product, is “lost for words!” May you and your wife R.I.P.”
Then there was former Heat forward Caron Butler, who was the Heat’s first-round pick in the 2002 draft but was selected in the second round.
“So heartbroken by this news,” he wrote. “Rest In Peace & Power.”
Rasual Butler spent the first three seasons of his NBA career with the Heat, who acquired him in the 2005 summer as part of the mammoth transaction that also included Jason Williams, James Posey, and Antoine Walker.
Prior to the deal, he appeared in 12 playoffs games for the Heat during their run to the 2005 Eastern Conference finals, starting one.
The Philadelphia native played for the New Orleans Hornets, Los Angeles Clippers, Chicago Bulls, Toronto Raptors, Indiana Pacers, Washington Wizards, and San Antonio Spurs. His most recent attempt at reviving his NBA career was at a training camp with the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2016, and he was discharged on October 22, 2016.
Butler remains close to several former teammates, including Lamar Odom, whom he appears with on his reality television show Khloe & Lamar.
LaBelle, an R&B singer who competed on “American Idol” in 2004, was 31.
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