OT: Seven rich athletes who lost their fortunes

[LittleOzzy]

Almost 80 percent of National Football League players are flirting with bankruptcy two years after they retire, according to Sports Illustrated. NBA players aren’t faring much better. 60 percent of former National Basketball Association players end up broke within five years of retirement. Athletes squander millions of dollars due to bad decisions, lavish spending and poor financial planning. Here is a list of athletes that have lost their fortunes through some of the biggest financial blunders of all time.

Scottie Pippen

Known more for his on court defense than his off court business sense, former Chicago Bulls star Scottie Pippen lost $120 million in career earnings due to poor financial planning and bad business ideas. Air Jordan’s sidekick blew $27 million on bad investments and spent $4.3 million on a Gulfstream II corporate jet.

Latrell Sprewell

Look up the word “shortsighted” in the dictionary and you will see a picture of Latrell Sprewell. He famously turned down a $21 million contract because he said it wasn’t enough money to feed his family. Sprewell, who made over $96 million during his career, lost his $1.5 million dollar Italian yacht, named “Milwaukee’s Best”, in 2007. According to MSNBC, a U.S. marshal seized the yacht after Sprewell defaulted on his mortgage. His $5.4 million house went into foreclosure in May 2008. Don’t blame Sprewell for turning down the three-year, $21 million contract though. I mean really, who could live off a measly $7 million a year?

http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/top/news?slu ... &type=lgns

Good read. I was just shocked at the % of players that end up bankrupt from the NFL and NBA.

It's crazy that one person can blow that much money on just a few bad moves. Matt Bonner really needs to open up a finical planning school for athletes when he retires. He is going to be the only guy left with any money.

[lobosloboslobos]

this is madness. in fact it is sickening.

so much blame to go around here.

players for being egotistical, self-indulgent, short-sighted fools without the basic understanding that their vast wealth is an extraordinary gift and fluke that should be protected and will never ever come again

agents for milking and bilking and not properly guiding the guys whose finances they are determining (you can be sure that the agents have the sense to protect their cash, besides, the longer they are in the game the more power they get, unlike players)

the player's association for not at a minimum requiring every player to pay into a pension fund that will ensure that every player is financially taken care of for the rest of his life no matter what happens to his personal wealth elsewhere

the league for doing so little to train its players to be smarter - a 1 hour workshop once or twice a year won't do it

same with the teams who clearly are not doing remotely enough

the family members of the players (i.e. parents and wives) who likely are all too happy to enjoy the riches without standing up to the player and talking sense even when it isn't well-received and puts their personal status at risk

the sharks and freeloaders who prey on these rich guys

altogether an appalling story of greed and stupidity
very depressing

i sincerely hope our raps read it and figure out how to not be like all these guys

[Cyrus]

You can see why Owners will "own" the players in these leagues, if they do a lockout, they hold for a year, and the majority of Athletes and the way they life can't hold out that long, and will except any contract.

[4U2NVME]

Haha wow Tyson bought a bathtub for 2 freaking million dollars...

Thing is this money didn't just vanish into thin air...it was SPENT...so you can't say all these players didn't have insane amounts of fun and likely more fun than any of us on this board will ever have even if its for x number of years.

Having said that the agony of stupidity will haunt them forever....

[Cool-Hand-Luke]

That's just a shame. It must hurt to lose a fortune. I don't know whats worse. To never have been rich or to be rich and lose it all.

"Mo' money Mo' problems" - B.I.G.

Honestly, it's the cycle of players going through College to the NBA. Most of the people that are around these guys have only cared about their athletic abilities and could really give a s***t about them after they retire.

Maybe there needs to be a serious reform on the way these players develop during college. They need money/business management lessons as a standard to enter into the world of pro sports.

I hope some of that money got back to the communities from which these players came. Truely dishartenening.

I would also blame the culture of excess that we live in.

[ZKS_STAL]

it's what happens when you come from rags. you don't know how to handle the riches till they're gone.

[dacrusha]

Blame the entourages, associates and 'advisers' for many of these preposterous outcomes.

You can bet that people like Chris Bosh's pal, Hadi make out like bandits in these situations.

[Jai Monee]

I think it's safe to say 80% of all north americans live outside their means. There seems to be this weird obsession with consumerism, coupled with this idea that certain things are deserved. Taking expensive vacations, buying expensive jewelry and designer clothes, taking on a huge mortgage - all on credit. "Oh i worked hard this week, i deserve a little treat - maybe a new watch, fancy dinner or a new pair of kicks. Just put in on plastic". This whole buy now, pay later thing, but when later comes it's a bit daunting to be in so much debt, so people put down the minimum payment and go on living, never getting out of debt.

I'm an avid watcher of the show "from Debt til us part", which helps young couples overcome their debt. They profile people who pull in $30k per year, and people who pull in $160k per year, and no matter what they make there's a trend to spend more. Accessiblity to easy credit allows people to spend twice they make each month. For some people, there is never "enough".

[Young Moosehead]

Lol @ the idea of blaiming anyone but the players. People are talking about Agents responsibilities, League responsibility, team responsibilities....yeah right. Look at their mercanary approach to looking after theirs. They will jump agents, change teams, and even go to Europe if they aren't getting paid here. There is no olbigation, from these entities beyond paying the player his money

The guys that are wasting their money are short sighted and greedy and get what they deserve. Its their job to take care of themsleves and do some basic math and make their money last. It would be different if it was just that they were suffering in their old age and a little financial advice would have helped them last another 4-5 years on their earnings. The problem is most of these bone heads cant make it 2 years into retirement.

I regularly hear announcers say that people shouldnt blame Banks for taking 5 million or Hedo for making 10. And I agree, I dont blame them for taking it, but I can blame them for blowing it. Come on they are molly-coddled all their *** ***** lives, how many more excuses are people going to make for these million dollar babies.

[StopitLeo]

If you've seen the documentary Tyson, Iron Mike makes some interesting points about this 'phenomenon" when he talks about how he could only lives in extremes.

[FirstInkTDot]

Wow the money they spend on.... 2 Million for a fking bathtub... My Dad can pay off the house with that damn Bathtub and still have money to buy food, clothes, gas etc.... Sprewell is such a greedy guy... I liked Matt Bonner I would remember seeing him twice, once at Union Station and once at Bloor Station.

[C3SIUM]

MAN, so sick!
Ya I think friends have to take a lot of the blame...

[NetsForce]

lol funny thing is that if these guys would spend reasonably they could probably just invest in treasuries and be good for life...

Though I guess "reasonable" is somewhat relative...

[dacrusha]

Lol @ the idea of blaiming anyone but the players. People are talking about Agents responsibilities, League responsibility, team responsibilities....yeah right. Look at their mercanary approach to looking after theirs. They will jump agents, change teams, and even go to Europe if they aren't getting paid here. There is no olbigation, from these entities beyond paying the player his money

The guys that are wasting their money are short sighted and greedy and get what they deserve. Its their job to take care of themsleves and do some basic math and make their money last. It would be different if it was just that they were suffering in their old age and a little financial advice would have helped them last another 4-5 years on their earnings. The problem is most of these bone heads cant make it 2 years into retirement.

I regularly hear announcers say that people shouldnt blame Banks for taking 5 million or Hedo for making 10. And I agree, I dont blame them for taking it, but I can blame them for blowing it. Come on they are molly-coddled all their *** ***** lives, how many more excuses are people going to make for these million dollar babies.

Do you feel the same way for those NBA owners that are losing 10s of millions of dollars a year, over-spending on bad contracts and operating in poor NBA locales like Memphis, Milwaukee and New Jersey?

[macketeer]

A quick lesson in investments...

bling:


wealth:


Yes wealth actually does make money grow on trees. If you take care of your tree, it will actually grow bigger and bigger. If you don't it'll dry up to the ground. So remember boys and girls, next time you're at the BMW dealership and the dealer is convincing you how you can easily afford the brand new model with their superb financing zero down plan, step outside for a second...and ask yourself...is this a "need" or a "want"? Ask yourself, "Is that beamer reeeaaally going to get me more action in the sack friday and sat nights? Or perhaps I'm just a chump who lacks confidence?"...Most importantly, however, for every "want" that you buy, it is like you walking with a bucket to water your tree, but being really careless, spilling most of it on the way...and by the time you reach your tree...there is not much left ....

Now if we turn to our friends at the NBA and NFl who go bankrupt. They received a great gift...the seed of a quick growing tree. But what 60% of NBA players tend to do, they forget that the tree will provide enough shade from all those UV rays to protect them for generations...but instead they simply say "I want a nice **** view, lets put the chainsaw to this bitch now"

[Raptors Realtor]

I feel bad for some of these guys, but in the end, it's just pathetic, that they don't realize it in time to turn things around!

[Hobo Gonzolez]

Lol @ the idea of blaiming anyone but the players. People are talking about Agents responsibilities, League responsibility, team responsibilities....yeah right. Look at their mercanary approach to looking after theirs. They will jump agents, change teams, and even go to Europe if they aren't getting paid here. There is no olbigation, from these entities beyond paying the player his money

The guys that are wasting their money are short sighted and greedy and get what they deserve. Its their job to take care of themsleves and do some basic math and make their money last. It would be different if it was just that they were suffering in their old age and a little financial advice would have helped them last another 4-5 years on their earnings. The problem is most of these bone heads cant make it 2 years into retirement.

I regularly hear announcers say that people shouldnt blame Banks for taking 5 million or Hedo for making 10. And I agree, I dont blame them for taking it, but I can blame them for blowing it. Come on they are molly-coddled all their *** ***** lives, how many more excuses are people going to make for these million dollar babies.

Do you feel the same way for those NBA owners that are losing 10s of millions of dollars a year, over-spending on bad contracts and operating in poor NBA locales like Memphis, Milwaukee and New Jersey?

None of the owners are actually bankrupt. They have finances in other areas.

[HighOctane]

Well, at least many college tuitions were payed.


If you know what I mean.

[peteyjones13]

Ok, a bunch have gone broke.
But what a stupid article to throw out a random statistic 60% of NBA atheletes go broke within 5 years of retirement. That's (Please Use More Appropriate Word) and not true.
ALl because you can show 4 or 5 that have gone bankrupt(And I'm sure there are a bunch more) doesn't mean that 60% of them have. If your going to throw out a statistic like that, you need proof. Stupid article.

[J Dilla]

Think about this for a sec, I'm not too surprised these people spend more than what they earn.

The regular Joe Schmoe who gets a 45K entry level job heads to the Mercedes Benz dealership and purchases a 60K Benz. Athletes are no different, they see the availability of credit just like us and they spend more than what they earned. We live in a society that values material too much, and they'll use as much credit as they can to get it, like Jae Monee said. How many of you are full time students with a 6k visa card in your wallet? It gets tempting sometimes doesn't it?

We're just shocked at athletes because they earn hundreds of millions of dollars, but we don't know that there is no end to materialism no matter how much money you have. I think I've already posted this in a "Athlete going broke thread", but I've seen a lot of my dad's clients spending 80-100k for their daughters BIRTHDAYS and god knows how much they'd spend on their wedding and they end up having financial problems later on.

Blame the availability of credit and the person for being too materialistic. Stern should have the players take a mandatory Finance/Money management course when they're off.