READ AN EXCERPT OF TUFF JUICE NOW! - Chapter One (PDF)
Two-time All-Star and fourteen-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.
“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