Jared Gladwyn Butler (born August 25, 2000) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...

player for the

Grand Rapids Gold The Grand Rapids Gold are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and are affiliated with the Denver Nuggets. The Gold play their home games at Van Andel Arena. They began play as the Anaheim ...

of the

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is the National Basketball Association's (NBA) official minor league basketball organization. The league was known as the National Basketball Development League (NBDL) from 2001 to 2005, and the NBA De ...

. He played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the Baylor Bears. As a junior in 2021, he was named a consensus first-team All-American and helped lead the Bears to a

national championship A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, indi ...

. Butler was named the Final Four Most Outstanding Player (MOP).

Early life and high school career

Butler is the son of Richard and Juanea Butler. By the time he was eleven years old, he was competing in out-of-state basketball tournaments. Butler grew up in

Reserve, Louisiana Reserve is an unincorporated community in St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is located on the east bank of the Mississippi River. The population was 9,111 at the 2000 census. For statistical purposes, the United States Ce ...

and attended Riverside Academy, where he joined the school's varsity basketball team as an eighth grader. As a junior, he averaged 20.4 points and 6.7 assists and was named first team all-state. Butler averaged 27.4 points, 8.8 rebounds, 8.4 assists and 3.0 steals during his senior season and was again named first team All-State as well as Player of the Year by ''

The Times-Picayune ''The Times-Picayune/The New Orleans Advocate'' is an American newspaper published in New Orleans, Louisiana, since January 25, 1837. The current publication is the result of the 2019 acquisition of ''The Times-Picayune'' (itself a result of ...

''. Rated a four-star prospect, Butler committed to play college basketball at

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County , LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham , area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...

over offers from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

and Baylor. He picked the Crimson Tide because he was confused why Baylor was not recruiting him harder despite his coach Tim Byrd being friends with Bears coach

Scott Drew Scott Homer Drew (born October 23, 1970) is an American college basketball coach who is the head coach of the Baylor Bears, a position he has held since 2003. Drew began his coaching career as an assistant for Valparaiso under his father Hom ...

; the Bears were short on scholarships and long on guards.

College career

Butler enrolled at Alabama, but did not participate in the team's summer workouts and requested an unconditional release from his letter of intent in order to transfer to

Baylor University Baylor University is a private Baptist Christian research university in Waco, Texas. Baylor was chartered in 1845 by the last Congress of the Republic of Texas. Baylor is the oldest continuously operating university in Texas and one of the ...

. Alabama released him from his commitment in August. A scholarship had opened up at Baylor due to the early retirement of Jake Lindsey. Butler was eligible to play immediately after transferring due to his release. He averaged 10.2 points, 3.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists as a true freshman and was named honorable mention All-

Big 12 Conference The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference headquartered in Irving, Texas, USA. It consists of ten full-member universities. It is a member of Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) for all sports. Its ...

and to the league's All-Freshman team. Butler was named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week on February 25, 2019 after averaging 14.5 points, 4.5 assists and 4.0 rebounds in conference games against Iowa State and

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the B ...

. Butler was named the 98th-best collegiate basketball player going into the 2019–20 season by ''

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''. On November 5, 2019, Butler scored 30 points and made a career-high eight three-pointers in a 105–61 win over

Central Arkansas Central Arkansas, also known as the Little Rock metro, designated by the United States Office of Management and Budget as the Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway Metropolitan Statistical Area, is the most populous metro area in the U.S. state o ...

. He was named the MVP of the 2019 Myrtle Beach Invitational and the Big 12 Player of the Week after averaging 17.7 points, 3.7 assists and 2.7 steals over three games as the Bears won the tournament. On January 11, 2020, Butler scored 22 points as Baylor defeated

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...

for its first win ever at the Phog Allen Fieldhouse. As a result, he earned his second Big 12 Player of the Week honors on January 13. On February 3, he was added to the revised 20-man Wooden Award watchlist and was named one of ten finalists for the

Bob Cousy Award The Bob Cousy Award presented by The College of the Holy Cross (or Bob Cousy Collegiate Point Guard of the Year Award) is an annual basketball award given by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to the top men's collegiate point guard. ...

. At the conclusion of the regular season, Butler was named First Team All-Big 12 and a third-team All-American by the

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. ne ...

, USBWA, NABC and '' Sporting News'' after averaging 16.0 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 1.6 steals per game. Following the season, Butler declared for the

2020 NBA draft The 2020 NBA draft was held on November 18, 2020. The draft was originally scheduled to be held at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on June 25, but due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it was instead conducted at ESPN's facilities in Bristol, Connecti ...

. On August 3, he announced he was withdrawing from the draft and returning to Baylor. Coming into his junior season, Butler was named Preseason Big 12 player of the year. On January 18, 2021, he recorded a season-high 30 points and eight assists in a 77–69 win against Kansas. Butler was a unanimous First Team All-Big 12 selection and earned consensus first-team All-American honors. He led Baylor to its first national championship, and was named NCAA Tournament Most Outstanding Player after posting 22 points and seven assists in an 86–70 win over previously undefeated Gonzaga in the title game. As a junior, Butler averaged 16.7 points, 4.8 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game. On May 30, he declared for the

2021 NBA draft The 2021 NBA draft, the 75th edition of the National Basketball Association's annual draft, was held on July 29, 2021, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. With the first overall pick, the Detroit Pistons selected Cade Cunningham. The NBA u ...

, forgoing his remaining college eligibility.

Professional career

Utah Jazz (2021–2022)

On June 22, 2021, Butler was referred to a fitness-to-play panel by the NBA and was not permitted to play or practice in the league. On July 17, he was medically cleared to play in the NBA. On July 29, Butler was selected in the second round of the

with the 40th overall pick by the New Orleans Pelicans, but was traded to the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...

via the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference ...

. On August 12, he signed his rookie scale contract with the Jazz. On March 18, 2022, Butler recorded a career-high 21 points, alongside seven assists, in a 121–92 win over the

Los Angeles Clippers The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...

. On October 15, 2022, Butler was waived by the Jazz.

Grand Rapids Gold (2022–present)

On November 4, 2022, Butler was named to the opening night roster for the

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, 42 , , 1 , , 8.6 , , .404 , , .318 , , .688 , , 1.1 , , 1.5 , , .4 , , .2 , , 3.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 42 , , 1 , , 8.6 , , .404 , , .318 , , .688 , , 1.1 , , 1.5 , , .4 , , .2 , , 3.8

Playoffs

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, 1 , , 0 , , 5.0 , , .000 , , — , , — , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 1 , , 0 , , 5.0 , , .000 , , — , , — , , 1.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0 , , .0

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2018–19 , style="text-align:left;", Baylor , 34 , , 21 , , 26.8 , , .395 , , .351 , , .794 , , 3.1 , , 2.7 , , 1.0 , , .1 , , 10.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , style="text-align:left;", Baylor , 30 , , 30 , , 30.4 , , .421 , , .381 , , .775 , , 3.2 , , 3.1 , , 1.6 , , .1 , , 16.0 , - , style="text-align:left;",

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, style="text-align:left;", Baylor , 30 , , 30 , , 30.3 , , .471 , , .416 , , .780 , , 3.3 , , 4.8 , , 2.0 , , .4 , , 16.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 94 , , 81 , , 29.1 , , .431 , , .384 , , .782 , , 3.2 , , 3.5 , , 1.5 , , .2 , , 14.1

References

External links

Baylor Bears bioUSA Basketball bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Butler, Jared 2000 births Living people All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players Basketball players from Louisiana Baylor Bears men's basketball players New Orleans Pelicans draft picks People from Reserve, Louisiana Point guards Salt Lake City Stars players Utah Jazz players