My advice to young professional athletes is to take your signing bonus and a substantial portion of your first year wages and make a downpayment on a well-located, fully occupied (but for one unit) apartment building. Hire competent management. You only need a break-even cash flow. Living there instead of a McMansion cuts your expenses. If things go south due to injury, management change or other cause, you have a place to live, plus an income, probably for life.
The top NBA players with max contracts are now making 50-60 million per year, with the new NBA rights deal, that number could easily go to 90-100 million per year meaning NBA players will easily make a billion in career earnings in just salary not counting off court earnings.
Making that kind of money will bring out even more family and blood suckers that will rob them blind unless they get solid financial advice, which unfortunately many of them will not get.
> My advice to young professional athletes is to take your signing bonus and a substantial portion of your first year wages and make a downpayment on a well-located, fully occupied (but for one unit) apartment building.
Used to know a guy that was a boxer and did that very thing. His managers spotted him at a local park program and didn’t rip him off. He got to fight with 10th ranked middle weight. Guy was built rock solid.