In addition to Butler’s family and local dignitaries, Nancy Lieberman herself, the Hall of Fame women’s basketball player and coach, also came to Racine to celebrate the opening of the court and Butler’s legacy.

Lieberman coached Butler when he played for the Sacramento Kings in 2015, the last team he played for in the NBA, and she admired how he carried himself.

“Every time Caron came to the gym he was impeccable in his approach, he came with a professional attitude, he separated himself from other players,” Lieberman said. “He’s just such a great human being.”

Lieberman, who also serves on the NBA Retired Players Association board, said she and Butler began talking about bringing a court to Racine.

“This is his town,” Lieberman said. “It’s neat to see somebody who deeply loves their community and here we are.”

Butler’s oldest child, JC Butler, has begun to follow in his dad’s footsteps: He was a star basketball player at The Prairie School, and just finished his freshman year at the University of California-Irvine, where he and his Anteaters teammates upset fourth-seeded Kansas State in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament.

JC watched with pride as his dad’s street was unveiled.