We know that NBA stars often get caught up in the “baller life,” when it comes to spending their millions in salary earnings. Between flashy cars, palatial homes, ornate jewelry, or any other items of opulence, NBA players can often spend their grand earnings much faster than it’s earned.
But it’s not always the “bling” that gets them in trouble. Poor investments, child support, and money loaned to friends and family (that’s never repaid) are just as often the culprits, if not more so.
Want proof? Check out this list of NBA stars who went broke after making millions in earnings, as a result of some combination of the above.
Dan Issel: Career Earnings, Unknown
Former ABA legend Dan Issel played 15 years of professional basketball, and then coached for another four years with the Denver Nuggets. But despite being paid a salary in professional sports for over two decades, Issel found himself having gone broke.
In 2010, it was reported that a bankruptcy court ordered Issel had to have some of his basketball memorabilia auctioned off in order to pay outstanding debts. He reportedly owed $4.5 million in debt owed to at least 34 creditors, including family, friends and a company that trained racehorses.
Rick Mahorn: Career Earnings, $6 million
Mahorn, a member of the iconic “Bad Boy” Detroit Pistons, earned over $6 million during his NBA career. On top of that, Mahorn received a six-figure salary as a commentator after his playing career ended. But all that cash wasn’t enough to support Mahorn and his wife, as the free-spending couple declared bankruptcy in 2010.
Court documents showed that Mahorn and his wife had just $1,101 to their name, and still owed a whopping $518,688 in mortgage payments. Mahorn lost most of his earnings through the trifecta that plagues most athletes: poor investment choices, expensive homes, and frivolous luxury items.
Saddest of all, Mahorn “lost” his championship ring from his days with the Pistons. In his defense, the amount of money Mahorn squandered away is chump change compared to the other guys on this list.
Robert Swift: Career Earnings, $11 million
Robert Swift’s story of going broke, and the events afterward, are just as tragic as they are bizarre. Swift, a former high school star, was drafted by the Seattle Supersonics with the 12th overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft. It’s been reported that Swift’s parents convinced him to skip college and go straight to the NBA, after being seduced by the $4.4 million contract Swift was promised by Seattle. Unfortunately, in his second season in the NBA, Swift tore his ACL, and was never the same player. Shortly after things fell apart on the court, his personal life took a turn for the worst.
Swift blew his earnings on a combination of child support bills, substance abuse, and a $1.6 million home. In 2013, cops were called to the home because Swift refused to leave, even though it had been foreclosed upon by the bank. Upon entering the home, the police reported it had been completely trashed, and found a “small arsenal of weapons.” Over the past few years, things have gotten worse for the troubled big man. Swift has been locked up multiple times for various transgressions.
Randy Brown: Career Earnings, $15 million
Despite making over $15 million as a player, including a stint with the three-time NBA Championship-winning Chicago Bulls, and spending several years as an assistant coach with the Sacramento Kings, Randy Brown found himself having fallen deeply into the red in his post-NBA days.
After making over $15 million in career earnings, a federal bankruptcy judge in Sacramento ordered Brown to auction the championship rings he won with the Bulls. While the rings were appraised around $40,000 each, the opening price was set at $19,000.
Delonte West: Career Earnings, $16 million
At this point, Delonte West is best known for rumors that he allegedly had a relationship with a (very famous) teammate’s mom. While many NBA fans have laughed at this story, there’s nothing funny about the actual Delonte West story. West, who suffers from manic depression, and is bipolar, blew through the $16 million he earned during his eight-year NBA career.
During the 2011 NBA lockout, West was so strapped for cash, he applied for a job at Home Depot. Things only got worse from there. In 2016, he was reportedly spotted wandering around a Jack In The Box parking lot in Houston, wearing a hospital robe and no shoes.
Glen Rice: Career Earnings, $33 million
Over the course of his career, the sharp-shooting Glen Rice earned more than $33 million in salary. But in a 2010 paternity suit served to him by a Fort Lauderdale woman, it was revealed that Rice was all but broke.
Rice indicated that in his post-playing days, he went “almost broke” after not being able to find any meaningful work, doing little more than signing memorabilia and making basketball camp appearances. He’s also had to bear the brunt of a slew of bad investments. To make matters worse, he was paying over $2,000 a month in child support.
Jason Caffey: Career Earnings, $35 million
Jason Caffey is best known for two things: parlaying his minor role on the Chicago Bulls into a (ridiculous) seven-year, $35 million contract with the Golden State Warriors, and the awful decisions he made off the court. The Warriors immediately regretted overpaying for Caffey, and proved it by buying out his contract after just one season. From there, the legal troubles (and legal fees) began.
In 2008, he was sued for failure to make his required child support payments. In Caffey’s case, he owed monthly child support payments for 10 children by eight different women! At one point, he even served an eight-day sentence for failure to pay his child support payments.
Charles Barkley: Career Earnings, $40 million
Barkley is doing well nowadays, but there was a point in his career when Sir Charles was flat out broke! According to Barkley, his former agent Lance Luchnick is to blame. In an interview with Dan Patrick, Barkley revealed that Luchnick would give him “an allowance” and claimed to be investing the rest of his money. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case. Four years into his NBA career, Barkley was shocked to find out he was broke, and owed the IRS more money than most people earn in a lifetime.
But in fairness, Barkley’s shady agent wasn’t the only cause of his financial woes. Barkley openly admits to having a big-time gambling problem, and the money he’s blown is shocking. At one point, Barkley estimated losing over $10 million in gambling. Of course, he attributes most of this to the “peer pressure” of keeping up with good buddy Michael Jordan, another athlete with a healthy appetite for gambling.
Larry Johnson: Career Earnings, $40 million
During his playing days, Johnson made some serious money as a member of the Charlotte Hornets and the New York Knicks. He also struck gold with an iconic endorsement deal with Converse, where he dressed up as “Grandmama.” But these days, it’s the four different women whom he’s had five children with who are making money. Johnson, the former #1 overall pick in the 1991 NBA Draft, declared bankruptcy by claiming more than $300,000 in debts, including over $120,000 in unpaid child support.
But, Johnson’s story took a very interesting turn several months ago, when one of those women alleged that Johnson has $26 million stashed away in a private account. She also claims that Johnson only sends $1,000 of the court appointed settlement of $11,000 per month in child support.
Dennis Rodman: Career Earnings, $50 million
Want proof that women love bad boys? At one point, Dennis Rodman owed over $858,000 in unpaid child support, for two children he had with his third wife, and even $50,000 in spousal support.
Rodman’s attorneys, who claim they’re working pro bono because of Rodman’s lack of funds, indicated that the NBA Hall of Famer is very sick due to personal issues (and his well known drinking problem), and cannot pay his debts due to his poor health and diminished marketability. Based on all the pictures and stories of Rodman’s rock star lifestyle, it’s no surprise the 5-time NBA Champion has nothing left to show for his hard work on the court.
Kenny Anderson: Career Earnings, $60 million
Very few players over the past couple decades have sabotaged their lives (on and off the court) as miserably as Kenny Anderson. The High School All-American and college star’s road-to-ruin is like a bingo card for the typical issues you see in these stories.
There’s the collection of luxury cars (Porsche Carrera, Lexus, Mercedes, and a customized Range Rover), the poor business investment (a failed clothing line called “Kenny the Kid”), child support debts (seven kids from five different women), and legal issues.
It’s sad to see that his off-the-court exploits were in the news more often than his accomplishments in the NBA.
Darius Miles: Career Earnings, $61 million
With the 3rd-overall pick in the 2000 NBA draft, the Los Angeles Clippers selected 6-foot-9 small forward Darius Miles, straight out of high school. Miles played well his first few seasons in the league, earning All-Rookie First Team honors. Alongside teammates, Quentin Richardson, Corey Maggette, Lamar Odom, and Elton Brand — the young Clippers entertained fans with their exciting, high flying style of play.
But after just two seasons in L.A. – Miles was traded to the Cleveland Cavs. In the years that followed, Miles’ career was derailed by injuries, forcing him to miss two full seasons, and eventually retire when he was just 27-years-old.
Now let’s talk about money. Despite earning more than $66 million during his 8-year career, in 2016, Miles revealed that he was dead broke. Like most young athletes, his story of rags to riches — then back to rags — was in large part due to excessive spending — by himself and those around him. As you can see in the photo above, “D-Miles” was a big fan of big jewelry.
Christian Laettner: Career Earnings, $61 million
Not many people are going to shed tears for anything bad that happens to Christian Laettner, who will go down as one of the most hated college basketball players of all time.
Regardless, in 2016, a collection of creditors who said they were among those owed more than $14 million from the former Blue Devils star, were trying to get him to voluntarily file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Laettner and former Duke teammate and roommate Brian Davis founded Blue Devil Ventures in 1995, but Laettner was often forced to pay back large sums of money borrowed to furnish many of his ventures.
Joe Smith: Career Earnings, $61 million
The former #1 overall pick of the 1993 NBA Draft, forward Joe Smith earned upwards of $61 million over the course of his 16-year NBA career. But only a handful of years after calling it quits, Smith reportedly has debts currently in the neighborhood of $157,000.
Smith admitted that, after taxes, agent fees and management fees, he actually took home about $18 million over the course of his career. But between bad Real Estate investments, a luxury car collection (which included a Bentley and two Range Rovers), a costly divorce, and other bad investments.
Cliff Robinson: Career Earnings, $62 million
Longtime NBA forward Cliff Robinson, aka “Uncle Cliffy,” earned more than $62 million in salary during the course of his NBA career. But within 2 years of his NBA career wrapping up, Robinson declared bankruptcy.
As a result of his bankruptcy, he was forced to sell off his 5,900-square-foot home, which sits on 16 acres and has a pool, tennis court and guest house. When Robinson filed for bankruptcy in 2009, he listed liabilities at $12.4 million and assets of $7.1 million—for a negative net worth of $5.3 million.
Eddy Curry: Career Earnings: $70 million
Based on his appearance, one could guess that Eddy Curry may have eaten his money. While that’s not exactly what happened, the truth isn’t much better. First, there was the foreclosure on the home that he took out a $4 million mortgage on. Apparently, he couldn’t handle the $25,000 monthly payment.
But it doesn’t stop there. There’s the personal chef he pays $6,000 a month (that explains the waistline), the luxury cars (a pair of Land Rovers and a Phantom convertible), and the $16,000 stipend he gives to at least 5 relatives.
And last but not least, the seven children from three different women (although, in fairness, four of the children are with his current wife, Patrice Curry). It’s sad to see how many players on this list received a majority of their salary from the Knicks.
Derrick Coleman: Career Earnings, $91 million
The bankruptcy of this troubled superstar-that-never-was is actually a bit sad when compared to the other players on this list. Coleman, who earned more than $91 during his 15 year NBA career, invested a large portion of his money in an effort to revitalize the city of Detroit. Through real estate and other business ventures (ownership stakes in a Hilton Hotel, a pizza and doughnut franchise) Coleman hoped to rejuvenate his hometown.
Unfortunately, real estate investments — especially in areas hit hardest by the economic crash of the last decade — always seems to be the harbinger of bankruptcy, especially for pro athletes. Coleman filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2010, owing over $2 million to as many as 99 different creditors. He has since sold his remaining assets to pay off those creditors.
Shawn Kemp: Career Earnings: $92 million
Few players in NBA history have reaffirmed the reputation of philandering the way “the Reign Man,” Shawn Kemp, did. Officially, Kemp fathered seven different children with six different women. Unofficially, or unaccounted for? There are rumors of many, many more.
Still, those children “on the books” eventually drained away his earnings via child support payments, and with a portion of the money he had left, Kemp spent on illegal substances, for which he was eventually arrested for possession of.
During the mid 90’s, Kemp was arguably one of the best (and most popular) players in the NBA. Nowadays it seems like his name is only mentioned in articles like this.
Latrell Sprewell: Career Earnings, $100 million
One of the main reasons the NBA became one of the most unlikeable pro sports leagues, before the recent influx of young superstars, was comments and actions of players like Latrell Sprewell. During contract negotiations with the Minnesota Timberwolves, Sprewell famously rejected a $27 million extension, claiming it wasn’t enough to feed his family. When Sprewell said “feed my family” he actually meant “fuel my yacht” — an absurd luxury item that he eventually lost once he stopped making payments.
In addition to having his yacht seized, Sprewell also had multiple million-dollar homes foreclosed upon. How does this happen to a guy who once made $21 million in one year? Then again, given the stories of Sprewell’s erratic behavior, maybe we shouldn’t have had such high expectations.
Vin Baker: Career Earnings, $100 million
You want a riches-to-rags story? In a 25-year span, Vin Baker went from an NBA All-Star with a $100 million contract, to completely broke and training to be a manager at Starbucks. The four-time All Star developed a serious drinking problem during his playing days, and the addiction would eventually cost him his NBA career.
As far as the money he earned? It’s a combination of the usual suspects: some bad investments, but mostly lavish expenditures on suits, cars, shoes, and bankrolling his entourage (who would often rack up bills over $10,000 for a single meal). In 2008, Baker lost his 10,000 square-foot Connecticut mansion to foreclosure.
Antoine Walker: Career Earnings, $110 million
He might not be number one on this list, but Antoine Walker has become the poster child for broke athletes. Ironically, one of his first investments as a rookie was a financial advisor, who he paid to come up with a plan for his money. Of course, Walker then did everything except what his advisor recommended. There were the millions of dollars in luxury cars (his prized possession was a Maybach worth over $350,000), designer suits, and over-the-top vacations. There was the $700,000 (give or take) that he allegedly lost in two years on gambling.
Rumor has it that, being from Chicago, Walker tried to keep up with Michael Jordan’s gambling habits. And, of course, there were the real estate investments in Chicago that left him on the hook for millions of dollars in almost 140 foreclosed properties. When he hit rock bottom in 2010, Walker declared bankruptcy with more than $12.74 million in liabilities. Ouch.
Scottie Pippen: Career Earnings, $120 million
For someone who was always labeled as being notoriously tight-fisted with his money, the news of Scottie Pippen’s empty wallet came as a shock to most fans and former players. Between his NBA contracts, and endorsement deals, Pippen earned more than $120 million.
Some say his losses are a result of “bad investments” and “poor planning,” but the details of how he lost this much money are still murky. The most well known of his bad “investments” was his purchase of a $4 million private jet in 2002. Pippen then spent another million to repair it … and then never used the plane. Don’t worry Scottie, MJ has a really nice jet, we’re pretty sure he’ll give you a ride.
Gilbert Arenas: Career Earnings: $160 million
In fairness, Gilbert Arenas isn’t quite “broke.” After all, he reportedly still makes $169,895 per years from various investments he made. But after earning north of $160 million over the course of his NBA career, Arenas had to declare that he couldn’t afford some of the finer things in life — such as putting his kids through private school, which would cost almost $92,000 per year.
Some of his more wasteful purchases included; an $8,000 Mercedes-Benz electric toy car, weekly car washes for $675 a pop, and a custom shark tank which costed Arenas $6,500 per month to upkeep.
Arenas also made financial headlines recently when he called local sheriffs to collect on a $110k defamation judgment against reality TV actress Laura Govan.
Allen Iverson: Career Earnings, $200 million
No player in NBA history did the “live fast and go broke” thing better than Allen Iverson. But Iverson had a very unique way of spending his cash. Few athletes in sports history were as generous, yet totally reckless as “The Answer.” There were numerous stories of Iverson giving homeless people in Philadelphia large wads of hundred dollar bills, because he said he’d likely be one of them if not for basketball. But he also foolishly bankrolled his entire entourage whenever and wherever they were. Including insane amounts of money spent at casinos. Of course, there were the usual “bling” purchases too. Iverson and all of his buddies had plenty of flashy jewelry, fancy cars, and expensive clothing.
He then spent $4.5 million on a gated estate in Atlanta that spanned almost 10,000 square feet, featuring a gourmet kitchen (which rarely got used), a massive bar, and gutters made from pure copper. Iverson refused to employ any financial advisors after he became wealthy. Instead he remained loyal to his “first-day friends,” for better or for worse. He’d rack up enormous debt on credit cards, then simply stop paying for most of the purchases. At a divorce hearing in 2012, he told the court he didn’t even have enough money for a cheeseburger.