Retired basketball star Magic
Johnson recently made news with his purchase of the L.A. Dodgers for $2
billion. But not all professional athletes have maintained their fortunes.
Dennis Rodman was the latest to go broke. Dozens of athletes have filed for bankruptcy,
had their homes foreclosed or lost millions in other ways. Read on to see which
athletes ended up broke at one point in their lives.
Former NBA player
Allen Iverson holds the sixth regular-season career scoring average of all time
and the playoffs average that’s second only to Michael Jordan. However,
Iverson’s mansion in Cherry Hills, Colo., went into foreclosure in March 2011.
He bought the 6,848-square-foot six-bedroom home for $3.88 million in January
2008. He quit paying the mortgage prior to the foreclosure and owed more than
$2.5 million, according toThe Denver Post.
Antoine Walker
made more than $110 million in his NBA career, which included a championship
with the Miami Heat in 2006. But in March, he sold his championship ring for
$21,500 to help pay back his creditors, according to celebrity gossip web site
TMZ. He filed for bankruptcy in 2010, citing total assets of $4.28 million and
liabilities of $12.74 million.
Olympic gold medal
ice skater Dorothy Hamill was one of the earliest icons of figure skating and
was the first female athlete to sign a $1-million-a-year contract, which was
with the Ice Capades. However, her wealth didn’t last. She filed for bankruptcy
in 1996 and lost her ownership of the Ice Capades company. Despite her
financial issues, in 2000 she was inducted to the World Figure Skating Hall of
Fame.
John Daly earned
between $50 and $60 million during his career as a two-time PGA Major champion.
But he gambled most of it away, according to his autobiography. Daly also once
lost $1.65 million in five hours playing slot machines. His $1.6 million house
was foreclosed on in early 2009. The 7,671-square-foot home had four bedrooms
and sat on 2.11 acres.
During Julius
Erving’s 16-year NBA career, he was one of the highest-paid basketball players
and one of the first players to earn over $1 million per year. He owned a
6,500-square-foot home in Utah that included five bedrooms and, of course, a
basketball court. It was listed for sale in January 2010 for $2.5 million. But
in December 2010 Ervingdefaulted on the $2.23 million home after failing to
find a buyer.
Mike
Tyson
The heavyweight
champion earned an estimated $400 million in his career. But much of his wealth
went toward buying homes, jewelry, drugs – and two divorce settlements. Some of
his extravagant purchases included a $2 million bathtub and $140,000 for two
Bengal tigers. He filed for bankruptcy in 2003, listing $27 million in debts.
Of those debts, he owed the IRS $13.4 million. Tyson is hoping for a comeback
of sorts; he’s scheduled tostar in a one-man show about himself, set to
premiere next month at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Marion Jones won
three gold and two bronze medals in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Australia. But
in 2007 she forfeited her medals and prizes when she admitted to using
performance-enhancing drugs and lying about it. Jones was sentenced to a
six-month jail term. She then lost $1 million in endorsements and her $2.5
million North Carolina home went into foreclosure. She later played in the WNBA
for the Tulsa Shock in 2010 and 2011.
Michael Vick used
to be the highest-paid NFL player on the Atlanta Falcons with a 10-year
contract worth $130 million. But in 2007, he went to prison for an illegal
dog-fighting ring, which cost him his salary, contract and endorsements. He
filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy from prison in 2008. After his release in 2009,
Vick signed with the Philadelphia Eagles initially for two years on a contract
worth over $6 million, and signed again with them in 2011 for a six-year, $100
million contract.
The former NBCA
player Dennis Rodman was in court this week and faces up to 20 days in jail for
failure to pay $860,000 in spousal and child support. The former Chicago Bulls
power forward is just the latest in a long string of pro athletes who have
squandered their fortunes.
Scottie Pippen
earned $120 million during his career, which included six championships with
the Chicago Bulls and fellow team member Michael Jordan. But he lost most of
his earnings—including $27 million on bad investments and $4.3 million on a
Gulfstream jet that was grounded months after its purchase. He sued his
attorneys for failing to monitor the jet purchase, won the lawsuit and was
awarded a quarter of the reward sought.
Lenny
Dykstra
Baseball star
Lenny Dykstra was a three-time All-Star player and won the World Series with
the New York Mets in 1986. Unitl four years ago, he listed his net worth at $58
million, but in 2009 he filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The filing listed
liabilities at $37.1 million and assets of $24.6 million. Dykstra was also
charged with bankruptcy fraud in 2010 and faces trial this summer. In the
meantime, he’s serving a three-year sentence for a grand theft auto case in a
California state prison.
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