“I’m very much human”: Jimmy Butler sheds superhuman tag as Heat star details life off the hardwood

Jimmy Butler is often looked at as a superstar who is as tough as they can come. But the Miami Hear star reminded the NBA world of his mortality, and more importantly his vulnerability in Netflix's 'Starting 5'. The superhuman tag was canned as he spoke about life off the hardwood, dealing with injuries and playing through grief.

After failing to make the All-Star cut this past season, Butler was required to up his game as the Heat looked to make the playoffs and beyond. In Episode 6 titled 'All-Star, Baby', Butler speaks about playing through injuries and even his hot-headed and confrontational approach on the court.

"Yeah, I workout. Yes, I train because I love to do it and it takes my mind off of my dad. For that moment, I am lost in the game, I am lost in the art. But as soon as the ball's done bouncing and I am back home, it'll all settle in. It sucks to hurt, it s**ks to lose people. They expect you to be superhumanm which is a thing in itself, but I'm ... I'm very much human.

Butler dealt with more than just injury last season. After missing a good chunk of games due to a calf injury and a severe MCL sprain that sidelined him from the playoffs, the forward also revealed that he struggled with his father's death in February. He learned of the news when the Heat were playing the San Antonio Spurs in an away game.

The Heat and Butler were sent packing to an early summer after a first-round exit against eventual champions Boston Celtics. As for Jimmy Butler, he revealed that he was hurting about his father's death well after and even when the show was being shot.

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"No amount of money could bring him back": Jimmy Butler on losing his father last season

Such was the grief that Jimmy Butler endured last season that he wasn't his usual self for the remainder of the season post the All-Star break. In the same docuseries, he said:

“I didn’t know what to do. No amount of money in the world could bring him back. Basketball, no matter how much I played it, it couldn’t fix that.”

The candid statement perhaps explains why Butler's season with the Miami Heat was a bit of a roller-coaster. He propped up 30 points only twice over the Heat's final 24 games of the season, and the team ended up in the play-in. They ended as the eighth seed but were no match for the Celtics, with a banged-up Jimmy Butler watching from the sidelines.