The lack of financial literacy that some NBA players have shown in the past has been hard to watch and we have seen many rebrand and find a way to make up for their financial losses within other ventures through their likeness.
The number one overall pick in the 1995 NBA Draft Joe Smith has found himself in the news a lot in the last few weeks. He went viral when his wife Kesha Smith went viral recording him when he found out she had an OnlyFans account. Since that moment, the former adult film star has spoken about how Smith has been struggling financially so she created her page to help them as a couple, to provide.
From the outside looking in, everyone thinks that professional athletes should have some type of financial showing after they retire. However the NBA players’ salary cap has gone up in the last two decades astronomically, Smith was drafted 28 years ago. The NBA was very different.
However Smith collected $61 million in his NBA Career, and he said he watched dwindle down to $3,000 in a DJVlad Interview. Smith said after taxes, agent fees, and management fees he was left with $18 million.
“I bought my mom’s house in Virginia, bought a house in the Bay, and I bought a house in Milwaukee. Those are three houses that I bought and lost a lot of money to get them off my hands. So, that’s when the issue came on the other end too. I didn’t make anything off the houses when I had to sell them.”
A sad story realized and lived more often than not by former professional athletes. They deserve grace and sometimes guidance and it’s best to help athletes early especially now, with players being given so much money at such a young age.
