How the Bulls' Jimmy Butler Owned the Goombay Bash

This article was written by Patch Editor Michael Sewall

Jimmy Butler has had his share of adversity. He was a homeless teen at 13 after his father abandoned him and his mother kicked him out of the house.

But at the annual Goombay Bash fundraiser for cancer research last weekend, Butler said the disease shows him how tough things can get for other people.

"It teaches me that there are a lot tougher things than just basketball," Butler said, adding that his grandmother had breast cancer when he was a child. "It was really tough to see what she had to go through, but she pulled through and I'm very thankful for that."

After speaking to the crowd, Butler met with fans and signed autographs to help raise money for The H Foundation, which has raised more than $4.5 million for the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University. The funding is used as seed money for basic science cancer research projects.

Although the 23-year-old Bulls guard, who had a breakout season last year, understood the impact cancer can have, he knew that the Goombay Bash is a time to celebrate and have fun all in the name of raising money. And it might have been hard to find someone who was having more fun (or at least joking around more) than Jimmy Butler. 

Check out the photos and video above to see why Butler owned his special guest appearance at Goombay.