Jimmy Butler, the six-time All-Star and founder of Big Face Coffee, needed an espresso grinder during his stay in Milwaukee for the opening two games of the Miami Heat’s first-round playoff series. His team called around Milwaukee looking for a machine and found Ryan Hoban, owner of Interval, a quaint little shop hugging the corner of N. Jackson St. and E. Pleasant St. Hoban connected with Butler’s representatives and received an address in the northern suburb of Mequon to deliver the grinder. He assumed he’d link up with the middlemen and middlewomen for the exchange. He brought samples of his shop’s coffee to share with Big Face’s bigwigs. But the black SUV sitting in the driveway with security nearby set off alarm bells. Hoban walked inside and put down his grinder. He met the crew as they were installing the espresso machine. « And then around the corner walked Jimmy Butler, » Hoban said.
Butler scored a game-high 35 points with five rebounds, 11 assists, and three steals in Game 1 on Sunday. He made 15 of 27 shots in 43 minutes. He dropped 24 points in the first half. Hoban helped Butler maintain his peace during the most pressure-packed stretch of the Heat’s season. Butler doesn’t buckle under pressure. But his normalcy matters. « Just being a normal human being and doing what I do on a daily basis, whether it’s home or away, that’s part of my routine, » Butler said of his coffee. « That’s part of being consistent. And it’s part of keeping basketball, basketball and keeping you as a regular person. »
Hoban will pick up his grinder sometime Wednesday. Butler might not be around for him to say goodbye. Hoban is hoping like hell the Bucks win Game 2 – and the series – so he doesn’t get run out of town. A Bucks win Wednesday guarantees a Game 5, meaning Butler will be back. Hoban doesn’t take the connection, however brief, lightly. Butler might be his most famous customer, but connecting with everyday people through coffee is what Hoban loves most. « This is what keeps me doing the thing that I do every day serving people coffee, » he said. « It’s the ultimate equalizer, I find. This kind of shows that again. « Jimmy Butler needing to find an espresso grinder on the road during the playoffs. And me being able to help him and serve him in that way, this is what I love about coffee. »
In summary, Jimmy Butler, the founder of Big Face Coffee, needed an espresso grinder during his stay in Milwaukee for the opening two games of the Miami Heat’s first-round playoff series. Ryan Hoban, owner of Interval, helped Butler maintain his peace during the most pressure-packed stretch of the Heat’s season. Butler might be Hoban’s most famous customer, but connecting with everyday people through coffee is what Hoban loves most.