At the beginning of the year, Alexandre Sarr played in Australia’s NBL, where the average salary is around US$100,000. Reed Sheppard was playing in college where, NIL business aside, he made nothing. Now, after taking second and third in June’s draft, they are millionaires. Sarr is guaranteed $23 million of his rookie contract with the Washington Wizards, while Sheppard will have to settle for $20 million from his deal with the Houston Rockets (both contracts could end up paying the duo more than $45 million each). It’s not just top picks who suddenly have access to wealth. Nine players in the second round of this year’s draft — guys who may never have a meaningful NBA career — signed multimillion-dollar contracts with their teams.
These contracts often change lives for the better. But they can also become a burden as young people, often still in their teens, suddenly face a fortune that arrived overnight.
“That’s a lot of money coming in,” Hall of Fame point guard Tim Hardaway told the Guardian. “A lot of money coming in.”
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Hardaway, author of the book “killer crossover” dribbling, was one of the biggest stars in the NBA in the 1990s. And with that status came wealth. According to Basketball ReferenceHardaway has earned over $45 million in salary during his career, not to mention his endorsement deals with Nike and other companies. But with money also came responsibilities.
“It’s tough and difficult,” he says. Chicago-born Hardaway explains that as soon as he started getting in the league, he started taking care of his mother. She stopped working, knowing he could support her. And while he was more than willing to do it, he says, it’s also a common story among professional athletes. One guy succeeds and becomes the family’s breadwinner.
Unlike many professionals, however, Hardaway didn’t spend much. He knew how to take care of his bills and not spend money on unnecessary things. But he made a purchase for himself early on. “My Jeep Cherokee,” he says, laughing. “With the limited gold rims. It was red, with gray seats. I thought I was the shit!
Hardaway was also able to tell people “no” when necessary if they asked for money. “Because of my mother,” he says. “Like, I don’t owe you anything! I won’t give you anything! I know how to say no. Man, I haven’t been told enough [growing up] that I know how to say no to other people.”
Hardaway also received advice from his first NBA coach, Hall of Famer and five-time Boston Celtic champion Don Nelson. “He said, ‘This shit goes by so fast. The next thing you know, you’re retired. So whatever money you make, make sure you take care of it,’” says Hardaway. “Those two things have stuck with me throughout my career.”
In the 2000–01 season alone, Hardaway earned $12 million (worth about $20 million in 2024) while playing for the Miami Heat, a contract that made him the highest-paid point guard in the NBA that year and included provisions for game-winners. teams and individual success). But while it wasn’t all about the money – Hardaway says he would have played in the NBA for free if he had to – he made the most of his talents. Most recently, he spoke with his son Tim Hardaway Jr, who plays for the Detroit Pistons and has earned over $135 million so far in his 11 years in the NBA. “I think he did a great job,” Hardaway says of his son’s financial situation. “His agent did a great job getting him paid. And he’s investing and doing what he needs to do to make his money grow. He and his people did a great job.”
Today, even compared to Hardaway’s time in the 1990s, contracts have exploded. This summer, Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum signed a deal worth US$313 million. But numbers like that can be scary. In the 1990s, when Charlotte Hornets star Larry Johnson signed an $84 million contract, teammate Muggsy Bogues worried it would be a burden on the forward, writing a few years ago in his memoir, “I was very happy for him, but I also knew that with a big contract like that came big expectations from the fans and the board.” In 2015, Johnson Filed bankruptcy.
Another former Celtics All-Star, Antoine Walker, made nearly $110 million in his career and he also lost it all. And former Boston Celtics champion Glen “Big Baby” Davis was recently sentenced to 40 months in prison for trying to defraud the NBA after losing all of his millions. Davis said the league doesn’t help its players post-career success (Warriors star Draymond Green agrees). Former Milwaukee Bucks star Larry Sanders, who signed a $44 million contract in 2013, told the Guardian earlier this year how difficult it can be to make so much money at such a young age.
“I come from nothing,” he said, “and then you become the one who has everything. The people who are supposed to guide you become your dependents. And you’re too young for that. Sanders said he didn’t have a support system at that time, both in the league and in his personal life. “You feed the sharks in many ways. You may find yourself in a very vulnerable position… It may feel like a setup, it may feel like a trap. I felt so alone.”
There are so many stories about athletes who lost everything they wanted. ESPN made a documentary on the subject in 2012 called Broke. That film cited NFL, MLB, and NBA players who lost tens of millions of dollars shortly after their careers ended, thanks to everything from failed business investments to alimony to misguided purchases of things like flashy mansions, and jewelry. Today, however, the NBA is better at educating its workforce about the dangers of becoming a millionaire in your 20s.
Additionally, there are former players looking to help a new generation, like former Seattle SuperSonics All-Star Detlef Schrempf, who earned more than $30 million in the NBA and now works for Coldstream Wealth Management.
He lists several things athletes should remember when they get rich, from hiring a registered investment advisor to separating finances from their representation, not granting anyone power of attorney and building a concerted financial plan.
“Education is key,” he says. “The right professional relationships will help you clarify your goals.” This advice doesn’t just come from his work, but also from his life as a player. “I never expected to make so much money growing up, even while I was in college,” Schrempf says. “I grew up without a lot of money, and although we lived well after signing a big contract, we lived within our means, never overspending.”
Bob Whitsitt, former NBA general manager who brought Schrempf from the Indiana Pacers to Seattle, signed dozens of players worth hundreds of millions of dollars over his years as an executive. Whitsitt has seen it all. “A lot of guys, when they get their contracts, they like to have tangible things,” he says. “There’s always the guy who buys his mom the house or tells his mom to stop working…but then you have his friends or entourage who are on the payroll and that’s probably one of the ways you start losing money.”
Whitsitt cites successful players-turned-businessmen like Hall of Famer Dave Bing, who invested in the steel business, and Junior Bridgeman, who, despite never earning more than $350,000 in a season, now has a net worth of $600 million thanks to shrewd investments in media and fast food. But for every success story, there are many great losses. Whitsitt remembers a player paying for his wife to fly from Seattle to Atlanta just to get her hair done. He remembers another asking for a big signing bonus so he could buy half a dozen $125,000 watches for his friends. “It’s like someone won the lottery,” he says. “Statistically, many people who win the lottery and go bankrupt. They are not prepared to receive this huge amount of money. There are responsibilities, stress, pressure, everyone reaches out.”
But if a player is smart and focused on the long term, they can have a bright financial future. The current Rookie of the Year, for example, Victor Wembanyama, is not hyperfocused on jewelry or cars. The first thing he planned to buy when he signed his NBA contract was a Lego Millennium Falcon set. Memphis Grizzlies Defensive Player of the Year Center 2022-23 Jaren Jackson Jr invested a large portion of your money from the beginning. Miami Heat star Tyler Herro smartly named 2021-22 Sixth Man of the Year told GQ he knows his business You have to prepare him for life. And Portland rookie point guard Scoot Henderson took classes on finance. “I was locked in,” he told GQ. “Taking notes.” But there’s still room for fun: With his first contract, Herro bought his mother a $5,000 Gucci bag (along with two cars for himself).
“The money comes from playing basketball,” says Hardaway, reflecting on the life of an NBA player. “You have to have that money. But if you don’t go out there and do your job, you won’t make it [paid]. Sometimes I was good at [saving]Sometimes I wasn’t. [Investing] will help you in the long run. [Taking financial classes will teach you] about everything you should know about being a grown man. Some people listen and some don’t.”
