All About His Daughter Rylee and Son Brayan

Jimmy Butler has a softer side as a devoted father to his daughter, Rylee Butler, 4, and son Brayan Butler.

The NBA star has been rumored to be dating Kaitlin Nowak since 2019, the same year they welcomed their daughter. A few years later, Butler welcomed his son, however, he has been kept out of the public eye since his birth.

While Butler and Nowak do not often appear together in public or on social media, their focus on parenting their daughter is evident. Rylee’s birth came at a significant time for Butler, coinciding with his first season with the Miami Heat after spending just one season with the Philadelphia 76ers. Despite the demands of his basketball career, Butler has made it clear that his daughter is and always will be his top priority.

Both Brayan and Rylee appear in Netflix’s Starting 5, a documentary following five basketball stars in the 2023-2024 season. In the first episode, Butler showed off how he started his morning with the toddlers, with Rylee even boasting she knew her dad’s favorite type of coffee was a cappuccino.

“My kids, they really set everything in like proportion, the way that I look at things because when I come home, they don’t care if I had a triple-double or if I fouled out in the first three minutes of the game, I’m just their dad,” he said in the show. “They could care less about anything else. Whenever I’m home, I try to the best of my ability to be their dad first.”

From Rylee’s favorite tennis player to their involvement in the Netflix documentary, here’s everything to know about Jimmy Butler’s kids, Rylee and Brayan.

Rylee was born in 2019

Rylee was born on Oct. 23, 2019, in Miami. Her arrival marked a transformative moment for Butler, who has since prioritized his role as a father alongside his demanding basketball career.

The birth was not widely publicized at the time, reflecting the couple’s commitment to keeping their family life private.

Her birth coincided with her dad’s first season with the Miami Heat

Rylee’s birth came at a special time, right at the start of Butler’s first season with the Miami Heat. The significant moment in Butler’s life required him to balance the demands of joining a new team with the responsibilities of being a first-time father.

Demonstrating his dedication as a new dad, Butler prioritized his daughter over his professional commitments. The NBA star missed the season opener and the first three games of the Heat’s 2019 season to be with Nowak for Rylee’s birth.

Butler quietly welcomed Brayan

Butler welcomed a son, Brayan, sometime before June 2023, though he has kept him entirely out of the public eye. The little boy appears alongside Rylee in Starting 5, playing with their father.

They are their dad’s “why”

In a heartfelt interview with ABC News in June 2023, Butler revealed the profound impact his children have had on his life. He stated that Rylee and Brayan are his “why,” the driving force behind everything he does.

“I always talk about my ‘why,’ and my ‘why’ are my kids,” the basketball legend said about who he’s really playing for. “Like everything I do now, I want to make it home to them. I want to make sure they’re safe.”

Kyle Lowry is Rylee’s godfather

During an April 2021 episode of The Artist and The Athlete podcast, Butler revealed that Kyle Lowry, a former Miami Heat player and close friend of Butler’s, is Rylee’s godfather.

When asked in the interview what NBA player he would like to go up against, Butler answered that it had to be Lowry. He admitted that the 76er is not only one of his “absolute best friends,” but has also taken on the important role of godfather to his daughter.

“He’s the godfather of my daughter. As competitive as it is, we’re always laughing, we’re always joking around. I would say something else, but then the NBA is gonna look at this and be like, ‘Oh my god, he’s tampering,’ ” he said about his former teammate.

Rylee and Brayan love spending time with their dad

Though Butler keeps Rylee and Brayan out of the public eye, he’s shared glimpses of him spending time with Rylee — and he’s not afraid to get a little silly. In a TikTok video posted on her 4th birthday in October 2023 by ESPN, Butler fully immersed himself in his daughter’s party, getting his face painted alongside other kids.

The video captured the NBA star’s playful side, showing him with a big smile as he sat patiently for the face painter. He started off the video by saying, “Things you do for your kids,” while the painter applied red paint to his forehead.

After some chuckling is heard in the background — seemingly coming from Rylee — Butler asks, “Rylee, is that funny to you?” to which the youngster responds with a sweet “Yes!” At the end, the video shows Butler’s finished painted face, which resembled a pirate, eye patch and all.

When asked about the first thing he’ll do after the NBA playoffs in 2023, he told Bleacher Report, “I’m gonna play with my daughter, man. I love her to death, I miss her — I’ve been away for a very long time.”

He continued, “We’re going to get ice cream, we’re going to the park, we’re doing a lot of different stuff.”

Rylee’s favorite tennis player is Emma Raducanu

Rylee is interested in another professional sport, tennis, and her favorite player is Emma Raducanu.

In March 2022, during the Miami Open, Butler hosted Raducanu at his Big Face Coffee pop-up shop, telling the young tennis star that she is “my daughter’s favorite tennis player.”

Raducanu seemingly appreciated the compliment and commented on his excellent coffee-making skills, saying, “He did very good. The coffee art was something.”