ESPN.com: How to Be a Broke NBA Player
Well, as "fun" as financial meltdown can be, I guess. As Reilly tells us:
Filing for bankruptcy is a long-standing tradition for NBA players, 60% of whom, according to the Toronto Star, are broke five years after they retire.
I did a minimum of research and discovered that what makes this "60% go broke" stat so particularly nifty is that, according to InsideHoops, the NBA's minimum salary for the 2008-09 season will be roughly $442k. Not exactly bread-n-water money.
But let's be truthful here: How many guys who make the leap into the NBA (or the NFL, or MLBA, or whatever) were good with money before they got there? Instinct tells me very few. If you've sucked with money all your young life, and then come into a lot of it ... well, not much changes. You just have more money to suck with.
Once these pro athletes step up to the financial 3-point line, there's an entire world of agents, marketers, and family members just waiting to drain every dime from the athlete's (admittedly sizeable) pockets.
Not exactly a system which guarantees success, is it?
Labels: Odd 'n' Fun, Spending
