Mike Marquis had never seen Jimmy Butler play basketball _ not even on video _ when he strolled into a Texas high school gym in the summer of 2007.
Marquis, the longtime head coach at Tyler Junior College, really knew nothing about the youngster. He was there at the request of a local recruiting analyst who suggested Marquis take a look at Butler, who had no Division I offers.
Marquis watched Butler run down the court twice and offered him a scholarship on the spot.
"He said, 'Coach, I haven't even shot the ball yet,'?" Marquis recalled. "I told him I've been doing this long enough to know when there's a player in the gym."
From that humble start sprouted an unlikely journey of a kid once overlooked who developed into one of the top players in the NBA. Butler's self-made mission continues in Minnesota after the Timberwolves acquired the former Chicago Bulls All-Star in a blockbuster deal Thursday on draft night.
A three-time All-Star and 2016 Olympic gold medalist, Butler is widely regarded as a top-15 player who excels as a two-way talent and is entering the prime of his career at age 27.
Those who trace his career to the beginning express no surprise that Butler has carved out this success because he displayed burning desire back when no one knew anything about him. Everything he has earned comes from sweat equity.
"He had a lot of determination, a lot of fire trying to be great," Marquis said.
It seems almost unfathomable that an NBA All-Star could have zero Division I scholarship offers in today's culture of AAU basketball and social media recruiting promotion.
