The average salary for an NFL player who has only played for one year is $510,000 a year. For the NHL player who only has one year under his belt it’s $525,000 and for the NBA, it’s $845,059. But when they think they’re bigger than life, start meddling with drugs or give their money to the wrong people. Some of these athletes were veterans in the sport and were paid millions and still find a way to flush all their hard earned cash down the drain.
Here are some of the top professional athletes who went from mountains of cash to completely penniless.
7. Latrell Sprewell
Estimated earnings: $50 million.
The 13-year NBA star played for the Timberwolves. When he turned down a contract extension of $21 million from his team, he went into financial ruin. The Federal government repossessed his yacht, and he still owed $1.3 million.
In 2008, he defaulted on his $1.5 million mortgages and lost his home, couldn’t pay his motorsports bills and defaulted on another home loan with another $10 million.
