Butler talks recovery, professional career
One of the most decorated players in West Virginia basketball history has made his way back to Morgantown, but not for good.
Da’Sean Butler, who helped lead the Mountaineers to the Final Four during his senior season in Morgantown, is one of many West Virginia basketball alumni who's participating in the Bob Huggins Fantasy Camp which started on Friday and will also be participating the annual Alumni Game that will be played on June 16 in Fairmont.
The former Second Team All-American recently finished his third season with ratiopharm Ulm in Germany and currently preparing for his next opportunity as he seeks a new team and destination.
“Just enjoying my summer, working out, rehabbing, all kinds of stuff,” he said. “Making sure I’m ready for whatever the future will take me.”
What does the future hold for Butler?
For the time being, he’s not sure what’s ahead in his professional career.
“I don’t know, but hopefully a job though,” he said.
Prior to spending three seasons in Germany, Butler spent one season with the then-Austin Toros (now the Austin Spurs) of the NBA G-League, one year as a Graduate Assistant and one season each in France and Belgium.
The process of playing professionally seems to be a simple one according to Butler, which starts with his agent and other agents Butler’s works with in other countries.
“Either they mention me or my agent drops my name to them they just do their research,” Butler said. “If they want me to be there, they invite me, and if they don’t, they just don’t.”
Butler, who’s seeking better offers than the ones he already has, is anticipating his next opportunity to be overseas like the previous years, but is unsure when exactly that'll be since there’s no timeline.
“It can be anytime. It could be next week,” Butler said. “I’ve gotten offers, but nothing that I want, nothing that I want to do.”
Butler’s career got off to a shaky start and endured a setback when he tore his ACL and sprained his MCL during the Final Four in 2010 against Duke, but wound up being selected 42nd overall by the Miami Heat during that summer's NBA Draft.
“I felt that something happened, I tried my best to come back from it. I actually found a place where I could come back to and just rehab and relax and get my thoughts in order,” Butler said.
Prior to his injuries, Butler had helped the Mountaineers to their first-ever Big East Tournament title by hitting two different late-game buckets and the team had earned a reputation for completing comebacks.
“It was something about our team that when we were down, that’s when we all looked at one another, locked in and we knew we could come back and win a game,” he said.
Butler’s second game-winning basket of the tournament came near the final seconds of the Championship Game against Georgetown when he made a contested layup with less than five seconds remaining.
West Virginia won the game, 60-58, but Deniz Kılıçlı, a freshman at the time, later reminded Butler that he was wide open under the basket before Butler made the contested, game-winning layup.
“I still can’t see it,” Butler said laughing. “I remember (Deniz) told me and I look at it from time to time and people play and I still don’t see it.”
After being waived by both the Heat and then the San Antonio Spurs, Butler spent his lone season as a Graduate Assistant trying to to decide what exactly he wanted to do in the future. Prior to returning to West Virginia, he had undergone a third procedure on his left knee after his ACL disintegrated while he was with the Toros, according to an article from NBCSports.com.
Fueled by his love for the game and motivation to make more money since he had a son, he decided to keep pushing.
“I loved to coach, but I like loved to play a little bit more and it helps that I had a kid,” he said. “In turn, I just decided to rehab and get stronger and myself together to go play again.
“I just didn’t want to go out on terms I didn’t feel I played well or I didn’t feel happy with the way I played, so I went to the D-League and I got hurt and I just didn’t want that to be the end of the story.”
As a result of his injuries, Butler increased his basketball intelligence to give himself more of an advantage on the mental part of the game since his injuries put his athleticism at a disadvantage.
“I learned a lot more about the game,” Butler said. “I felt that I was always a smart player. I was already at a lack of athleticism, but it was a little bit worse after the injury, so just becoming a bit smarter and learning what I can and can’t do against more explosive grown men as opposed to 18, 19-year old kids.”
For the past four years, the Newark, New Jersey native hasn’t thought about how different things would’ve turned out had he not have got hurt and is happy with how life has turned out for him so far.
“Everything’s good,” Butler said. “I have a family, I have two boys. I’m super hyped and happy they get to come with me overseas and watch me play, they’re into things. I’m a dad, I go to tee ball games now and stuff like that…all is good.”
What lies ahead for Butler and his career remains in question, but being back in Morgantown with some of his former teammates who have battled adversity alongside him brings back memories and serves as a reminder of how strong the relationships he's built with others through the game of basketball really are.
“It’s always good to be around people you know, you feel comfortable with and have gone through things with,” Butler said. “Regardless of how many years pass, these individuals tend to be some of the first people you call, or talk to, or see, or want to see because you know you’ve had that relationship with them.”
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