Jeff Zillgitt

USA TODAY Sports

WASHINGTON — Washington Wizards forward Rasual Butler considered the questions with puzzlement.

Why, at 34 years old in 2013, would you play in the NBA's summer league usually reserved for younger players?

Why, at 33 years old, would you keep working out for almost an entire year even though no NBA team called with an offer?



It wasn't disdain or incredulity. It was more like why would you even think about asking that?

Instead of why, Butler asked why not? He answered the questions from the heart.

"Because I wanted to play basketball. It's very easy. It's a simple answer," Butler said. "If you're serious about doing what you love to do, then you're going to do whatever it takes for you to continue to do what you love to do.

"Some people say they love to play the game. If you love to play the game, you've got to go through the steps. You can't give up on your story."

Butler is the perfect example of a journeyman — seven teams in 12 seasons — and is one of the NBA's feel-good stories this season. Now 35, he is a key reserve for the 12-5 Wizards and is third in the league in three-point shooting percentage (56.4%).

"You have nothing but respect for Rasual Butler," Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. "We had him when he was very young. He is an absolute pro. You root for guys like that, and there is a reason why he has been in the league for so long."

Butler has scored 23 points twice in the past eight days, in victories against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Nov. 26 and the Miami Heat on Monday.

He has three other double-digit scoring performances, including 14 points in Washington's win against the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday, and is averaging 10.0 points in 18.5 minutes per game. Butler is also shooting 58.5% from the field and 66.7% (14-for-21) on three-pointers above the break.

"It's clear that the guy wants to play and he's fighting to survive in this league," Wizards center Marcin Gortat said. "It's not like he has a five-year deal and he's fully guaranteed. He's fighting to survive in this league. He's a true pro."

Gortat is not exaggerating. Butler arrived at the Wizards' training camp with no guarantee to make the team, and if Martell Webster had been healthy when the season started, there's a chance Butler would have been cut.

"I came to camp understanding they had a need for another wing especially with Martell being out early," Butler said. "Having a great point guard like John Wall and Andre Miller backing him up — guys who can really pass the ball — and Bradley Beal, Gortat, Nene. I just knew some shooting was needed along with someone who is a vet and understands how to play the game and blend in the younger talent and some of the vets."

This is Butler's best stretch of basketball since the start of the 2010-11 season, and that's a notable achievement considering most players 30 and older — not all, but most — who run into a dead end in the league and are without a team for a year are usually discarded for younger and cheaper.

Butler did not play in the NBA in 2012-13. The Toronto Raptors waived him near the end of the 2011-12 season, and he kept working on his game – by himself and with well-known basketball development trainer Joe Abunassar in Las Vegas and California.

He waited for a phone call that seemed unlikely. Unlikely to anyone but Butler.

"I don't think that way. I'm a very positive thinker," he said. "I just wanted to be prepared for when the phone rang. Even if it wasn't in the NBA, I was preparing myself to continue my career."

The Oklahoma City Thunder called in January 2013 and signed him to a D-League contract. He played 31 games for the Tulsa 66ers but never played for the Thunder. In July 2013, 34-year-old Butler joined the Indiana Pacers' summer league team.

"It was an opportunity for me to show them I still had good legs and run and keep up with the younger guys," he said. "That's what summer league was all about — to show that my body could still go through the rigors of a mini-camp and still perform."

He spent last season with Indiana and played in 50 games. The Wizards offered a non-guaranteed deal before training camp began this season.

"It seemed like a good situation so I came here knowing we would have the opportunity to compete for a championship and come out of the East," Butler said. "It was a very attractive team to come to."

He is the Wizards' sixth-leading scorer and worked his way into the rotation, averaging 13.2 points in the past six games. It will be tough for Wizards coach Randy Wittman to keep Butler off the floor.

"We're a very unselfish basketball team, and I've been the recipient of some good passes," Butler said. "Our system creates good shots for guys. Just understanding what those shots are. Reading the defense. Putting my work in before and after practice."

Butler refuses to take his role for granted. He shows up for practice two hours early to lift weights and work on his game – post-ups, pick-and-rolls. He's often the last player off the practice court, too.

"This is my journey," he said. "I just lean on my faith, put a lot of work in with the skills I've been blessed with and try to take advantage of opportunities when I get them."