In 2008, the NBA Players' Association claimed that 60% of pro basketball players go broke within five years of retirement. It’s not hard to see why. In the annals of “easy come, easy go,” few people see it come and go like professional athletes. While it’s true that many take their salaries and invest them in sensible and enduring business ventures, many others squander their multimillion-dollar salaries on expensive cars, jewelry and mansions, and when the checks stop coming in, they have little to show for it. Latrell Sprewell Basketball player Latrell Sprewell first made headlines during his tenure with the Golden State Warriors. During a 1997 practice, he choked his coach, P.J. Carlesimo, and earned a 68-game suspension. Sprewell still went on to a substantial career, earning almost $100 million. It all came to an end when he turned down a a three-year contract extension from the Minnesota Timberwolves worth $30 million. According to Sprewell, this was simply not enough money. He said, "I have a family to feed ... [team owner Glen Taylor] better cough up some money. Otherwise, you're going to see these kids in one of those Sally Struthers commercials soon." (Sprewell was referencing ChildFund International commercials, which provided sponsorship to deprived children around the world.) The Timberwolves’ upper management, unmoved by his family’s tragic situation, didn’t offer him one more cent, and by the end of the 2005 season, he was unemployed. By 2007, his yacht, “Milwaukee’s Best,” had been repossessed by federal marshals after missed payments and insurance worth over $1 million. In 2008, he defaulted on the mortgage on his Milwaukee home, sending it into foreclosure. His Westchester mansion went into foreclosure two years later. Lenny Dykstra Lenny Dykstra was a three-time All-Star player who graced the rosters of both the New York Mets and the Philadelphia Phillies. Nicknamed “Nails” by fans and seemingly never photographed without a thick wad of chewing tobacco lodged in his jaw, he helped lead the Mets to their 1986 World Series victory. After retiring, he embarked on a new life as a financial guru, but by 2009, his free-spending lifestyle had caught up with him, and he was so broke that he sold his World Series ring. He ultimately declared bankruptcy, and in the filing he claimed $50,000 in assets and $50 million in liabilities, including money owed to both Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase. Mike Tyson For a while, no boxer on earth was as feared as “Iron Mike” Tyson. The powerful puncher won his first 19 professional fights by knockout, some of which took place during the first round. He quickly became the heavyweight champion of the world, but in 1992 he was convicted of sexual assault and served three years in prison. When he got out, no amount of comeback matches could get him back his mojo, and after biting off a piece of Evander Holyfield’s ear during a 1997 fight, Tyson was disqualified. He never again won another championship. Money shouldn’t have been a problem for Tyson. After all, according to the New York Times, he had earned more than $400 million in his boxing career. However, he had spent almost all of it, frittering it away on extravagances like mansions, luxury cars and pet tigers. He also owed $9 million for his divorce settlement and $13 million to the IRS. When he filed for bankruptcy in 2003, he claimed debts of $27 million. Michael Vick Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick is almost as well known for his activities off the field as he is for his achievements on the it. Prior to joining the Eagles, he played for the Atlanta Falcons, who had signed him to a record $62 million six-year contract, as well as a $3 million signing bonus. Then, three years later, he signed a ten-year extension worth $130 million, making him the highest-paid player in the NFL. Everything seemed to be smooth sailing for Michael Vick until he went to prison for his participation in an illegal interstate dog fighting ring in 2007. The prison sentence sidelined him for almost two years, and during that time he lost his regular NFL salary and all of his endorsements, including a lucrative Nike sponsorship. The lack of income, combined with his own financial mismanagement, forced Vick to declare bankruptcy from federal prison. Marion Jones Marion Jones started out as one of the most inspiring stories of the 2000 Summer Olympics in Australia. A track and field athlete, she walked away from the competition with three gold medals and two bronze medals, an unprecedented achievement for a female athlete. However, her ex-husband testified under oath that he had seen her inject steroids into her stomach during the games, and she denied the allegations to both the press and to two grand juries. Jones eventually confessed to using performance-enhancing drugs in 2007, and it cost her dearly. Not only was she forced to forfeit all of the medals she had won in Sydney, but she was also sentenced to six months in prison. Just a few years earlier, she had earned as much as $80,000 per race, as well as $1 million in endorsements. But now her finances were decimated by legal expenses, and not only was her $2.5 million home in North Carolina foreclosed, but she was forced to sell her mother’s house as well. Scottie Pippen Scottie Pippen is best remembered for his tenure with the Chicago Bulls. The 2010 Basketball Hall of Fame inductee was there when they won six NBA Championships, and he was there during the 1995-1996 season in which they won 72 games. He is also the only person to win both an NBA championship and an Olympic gold medal in the same year, and he is one of only four players from the Chicago Bulls to have his jersey retired. Unfortunately, Pippen’s successes on the court couldn’t stop him from losing career earnings worth $120 million, including over $4 million for a corporate jet that was grounded just months after he bought it. He sued his attorneys for $8 million for failing to monitor the purchase, and he won the lawsuit. However, the jury ruled that Pippen bore plenty of responsibility for the purchase himself, and he was awarded only one quarter of the reward that he sought. Source: cnbc.com