Former NBA star Antoine Walker is the latest athlete to serve as a sad reminder of the importance of fiscal discipline. The Boston Globe recently reported that Walker, a 6’9” small forward who made at least $110 million over his 12 years in the NBA, owes more than $4 million to creditors. This comes after a July 2009 arrest for writing $1 million in bad checks while in Las Vegas.
Walker was well-known as a gambler on the court. A prolific outside shooter, he was often criticized for attempting 3-point shots at the expense of higher percentage inside shots. (An average NBA three pointer goes in only 36.7% of the time compared to 48.5% for a 2 point shot.) This criticism was largely misplaced: Walker averaged 0.98 points per 3 pointer attempted versus 0.89 points per 2 pointer attempted.
His gambling off the court, on the other hand, was far less publicized at the time — and far more personally damaging. When you’re playing “$15,000 hands with Michael Jordan during an all-night gambling session where estimates of money lost and won totaled several hundred thousand dollars,” you might have a problem. A salary of $49 million — a conservative estimate of what he took home after taxes and agent fees — is a lot, but that’s not Jordan money.
And as we’ve talked about before, the hidden costs of being a celebrity and “taking care” of friends and family adds up quickly:
Off the court, there were the cars, the jewelry, the houses, the suits, the gambling. He liked to move in an outsized entourage; his mother estimates that, during his playing days, he was supporting 70 friends and family members in one way or another. And speaking of his mother, he built her a mansion in the Chicago suburbs, complete with an indoor pool, 10 bathrooms, and a full-size basketball court.
[…]
Living at the Bishops Forest condominium complex in Waltham during the Celtics season, Walker turned the pavement surrounding his home into a virtual luxury car lot – two Bentleys, two Mercedes, a Range Rover, a Cadillac Escalade, a bright red Hummer. Often, the vehicles were tricked out with custom paint jobs, rims, and sound systems at considerable added expense. He also collected top-line watches – Rolexes and diamond-encrusted Cartiers.
The lessons here are simple and apply to everyone, not just athletes making $9 million a year: Make sure you’re saving a good chunk of your salary, limit your risky investments/gambles, and create and track a budget so you can stay on top of your cash flow.
