How those 36 athletes spent their first paycheck

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Paying for the registration of a professional sports team can be huge: many athletes get bonuses for signing higher than those won by Americans in a year. Some athletes squander their first big paycheck by buying luxury cars, homes and other luxury items, while others are more conservative, buying fast food or a party barrel. Take a look to see how those other people spent their first big paychecks.

Last updated: August 6, 2020

Kansas City quarterback Patrick Mahomes made headlines in early July for signing a record 10-year contract of up to $503 million. For everyone who has asked, “What is anyone doing even with this kind of money?” – now you have your answer. On July 28, it was announced that Mahomes co-owned the Kansas City Royals.

Mahomes’ father and grandfather spent many years participating in MLB, which contributed to his resolve to take on a role as owner.

“I’m a co-owner of the Kansas City Royals,” Mahomes told Yahoo Sports. “I love this city and the other people of this wonderful city. This opportunity allows me to deepen my roots in this community, which is a great pleasure for me.”

The wonderful NBA LeBron James signed his first major contract with Nike in 2003. Chris Dennis, James’ former PR manager, told ESPN that James had put the maximum of that cash in the bank.

“After I let it go, LeBron took this multimillion-dollar Nike check, deposited it and came out with maybe $2,000 in cash,” Dennis said. “He never spent or was frivolously pleased when the cash arrived. He took his closest friend to an amusement park, but he didn’t buy cars or new houses.”

NFL player Nate Burleson didn’t need to raise his first big salary on exaggerated jewelry, so he bought fancy jewelry that looked genuine, he told NFL.com.

“I bought an Escalade, an imitation watch and an imitation chain; in my mind, I think no one would wonder if they were genuine because I’m an NFL player, and I gave my parents cash to pay the bills,” he said. The place.

Although Burleson has made guilty purchasing decisions, he still regrets it.

“In retrospect, I would have liked to have bought a more fuel-efficient vehicle and house,” he said.

NASCAR pro Kyle Busch now makes millions, but started earning a lot less. When he earned his first paycheck of more than $65,000 for race cars, he earned a great salary.

“I went out and bought a five-year used vehicle from Papa Joe Hendrick, who was one of my former bosses,” he told CNBC Make It.

Jeremy Hill used his first big NFL paycheck to commemorate his time playing school football at LSU, with a giant tattoo on the back of Tiger Stadium, The Score reported.

“If it happens forcefully, why doesn’t it happen harder?” tweeted Hill about his new artistic framework.

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Harrison Barnes of the Sacramento Kings used his $2.8 million rookie salary to buy “a bed,” he told CNBC Make It.

“For me, developing, having a really smart bed was all I needed,” he told the site. “In fact, I tried all the beds in the bed shop. Usually, no matter which store I entered, I buy as cheap as possible, if that’s the case. So, so I can go into a bed shop and say, “I’m just passing through to decide on the bed I need to sleep in “and decide on one of the prettiest ones, it was pretty cool.”

For a time, Denver Broncos quarterback Joe Flacco was the highest-paid player in NFL history with an average of $20.1 million consistent with the season, CBS Sports reported. But after signing his record deal, he saw prevention at mcDonald’s service.

“Everything I want, I’ve already had, and everything I want, if I wish, I can pass and get it. But I don’t want anything,” he told CBS Sports. “I don’t want a $110, 000 car or anything like that. I mean, I love this four-door Porsche. I like to say I’m passing through to buy it. But do I want it? A year later, I said.” If I ever sign an important contract, I will approve the purchase of this Porsche. “Array … But I didn’t.”

When Shaquille O’Neal 20 signed a $1 million approval agreement with a commercial car company, and the NBA star soon spent that money. O’Neal told Business Insider that as soon as he was treated, he opened an existing account and went straight to a Mercedes Benz dealership. He ended up buying three cars: two $150,000 cars for himself and his father, and a $100,000 car for his mother.

“I’m just writing checks,” he says. “I’m buying TVs. I only buy things I didn’t even want. So, after that, I said, “You know what? I want to locate a sales manager. »

Colin Kaepernick gave one of his first San Francisco 49ers paychecks to his adoptive parents and asked them to donate it to a charity for troubled youth at the center, Mercury News reported.

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In 2005, Chris Paul, then a year at Wake Forest University, declared himself for the NBA draft and earned a $25,000 lead from his agency.

“I took my girlfriend, my friend [and] his girlfriend, [and] we went to a mall and went to some outlets and thought, ‘Just take something,'” Paul told CNBC Make It. [There’s no feeling like that.”

NFL player David Carr earned a $14 million signing bonus in 2001, however, he is very convenient with his expenses.

“[My wife and I] had already bought a great space in Houston, but we had nothing,” he told NFL.com. “I ate pizza sitting on the floor with my wife, so the first thing we did was buy a sofa and a TV. Then we pay for the space.

“It’s very tempting to pass out and blow it up,” Carr continued. “Fortunately, I had a proper system and my father would have kicked me if I was spending it recklessly.”

NBA player Gilbert Arenas bought a Cadillac Escalade with plenty of upgrades with his first big paycheck, he told The Players’ Tribune. Arenas has main suede points everywhere, as well as six televisions.

When Ryan Broyles selected the Lions in 2012, he wisely used his signing bonus. After years of accumulating debts, “the first thing I did was write my debts and pay my expenses automatically: the first steps to getting my credits correctly,” he wrote in a blog post for The Players Tribune.

NFL player Eric Davis will have to be a big Disney fan. He told NFL.com that he had spent his first big salary on “a pair of tracksuits and a Mickey Mouse gold watch.”

He also used part of it for his parents.

“My parents were looking for a new home, so I took care of them,” she says.

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New York Giants player Deone Bucannon bought his mother a Mercedes SUV in his first year and shared a photo of the acquisition on Instagram.

“By far the most vital [woman] of my life,” the photo captioned. “You deserve so much more [than that]. Words can’t mean how much you mean to me. Truly blessed by the opportunities the Lord has given me. I’m going to make the most of them.”

Field Marshal A.J. McCarron used part of his NFL rookie income to buy an engagement ring for his friend Katherine Webb. The ring has a 5-carat cushion-cut center stone surrounded by pink diamonds, E! News reported.

In his first year with MLB, outfielder Michael Choice bought an Xbox and a PS4, Bleacher Report reported.

Former Seattle Seahawks player Heath Evans bought his sister a Mercedes-Benz van with his first big paycheck and withdrew to eat weekly in a steakhouse franchise, he told NFL.com.

“Being in Seattle, I’m going to Daniel’s Broiler once a week,” he said. “That’s how I waste.”

Andre Iguodala, the Most Valuable Player of the 2015 Golden State Warriors Finals, told Wealthsimple that when he was given the $25,000 lead on his first major contract with the NBA, he went straight to Niketown.

“I bought a lot of Jordan,” he says. “I spent two or three thousand dollars and felt like I had spent a million dollars. I didn’t know how to spend the cash. And it’s so early that there’s not enough cash to buy a car, you know? IArray

Defensive finale Matt Judon told the Detroit Free Press that he planned to finish his first NFL paycheck at Taco Bell.

“I love Taco Bell,” Judon said. “I mean, obviously, I’m going to have a lot more cash than I know what to do, but as long as I think about what I’m going to do with my cash, I’m going to eat a chalupa or something. “

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Former Philadelphia Eagles player Chris Long is convenient to taste in his first craze, buying a luxury sedan.

“My first big salary, it’s pretty fun, I bought a Cadillac DTS,” Long told CNBC Make It. I think it was comfortable. I think “I’m making a smart selection here because I don’t buy the [Hummer] H2 or [Rolls-Royce] Phantom that many of my teammates were buying. It was a very comfortable car, but it looked like an old car, then they gave me a bigger taste and despite everything I sold it.

Shaun O’Hara gave his friends a birthday party when he won his first big NFL salary.

“I’m pretty sure I bought the barrel that night for my organization of friends,” he told NFL.com.

NFL player Willie McGinest spent much of his first salary on his family.

“The Toyota Camry was the most popular car at the time, so I bought it from my mother,” he told NFL.com. “So my parents didn’t need to leave the community where we grew up, so I demolished the space and built a new logo right there. After I drove them, I bought a new van.

San Diego Padres pitcher Donn Roach spent much of his first season’s profits on clothing and accessories for his French bulldog, Bleacher Report reported.

NBA player Enes Kanter made his debut as a basketball player in Europe and earned his first big salary at the age of 16.

“I got my first paycheck from my club team and I’m very excited,” He told CNBC Make It. “I took my friends to eat pizza.”

Baltimore Ravens supporter C.J. Mosley shared on Instagram a photo of a watch with inlaid diamonds he bought in his first year in the NFL.

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Amar’e Stoudemire signed a $3.5 million rookie contract with the Phoenix Suns at the age of 18.

“When I got the first paycheck and I saw all those zeros, it was for about $300,000, I thought, “Dude, it’s like Richie Rich’s movie,” he told Wealthsimple. “You wake up and now you’re rich. I was overwhelmed. I wasted on a new car. I bought a van. I have a very small apartment. I have a space for my mother. I bought some jewelry. I bought some clothes. I took my brother shopping. When you see the tears in your mother’s eyes and the joy on your brother’s face? These moments only happen once in a lifetime.

NFL player Ryan Riddle won a $35,000 signing bonus when he signed with the Oakland Raiders in 2005, which was the largest paycheck he has earned so far, wrote in an article for The Bleacher Report. Riddle used this paycheck to pay his fees to his agent, as well as to repay a $12,000 loan that had been used to cover his living expenses prior to the spin. He said the education camp kept him too busy to splurge, yet he made an acquisition for himself.

“I discovered that one of our only days off at the education camp was to make a stop at a furniture store with my friend at the time,” Riddle said. “We ended up buying a glass coffee table for my one bedroom apartment for about $179.”

Michael Robinson told NFL.com that when he was given his first big salary, “he was afraid of having a large amount of cash.” I think someone can borrow me or withdraw the cash from my account one way or another. I’ve never noticed cash on this scale before.

It didn’t go too crazy to spend it, but he bought a new car.

“I bought jewelry and a 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe when the taste of the vehicle chassis changed,” he said. “I’m excited about that.”

When he was a rookie pittsburgh Steelers supporter, Ryan Shazier used his new wealth to buy a new Porsche with a black exterior and a red interior, Bleacher Report reported.

Many athletes squander on luxury cars for themselves, however, Jimmie Ward used part of his first-year rookie income stream with the NFL to buy his daughter a mini BMW, Bleacher Report reported.

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Marcus Smart told his mother he would buy a space if he went to the NBA, and kept his promise when he signed with the Boston Celtics, MassLive reported.

“This is probably one of a young guy’s greatest accomplishments is to give your mother what she’s looking for and take care of her, especially after she’s taken care of you all those years, and make her happy,” she told the online page. buying a house for his mother in the dallas suburbs. “It’s a blessing. I thank God every day for the opportunity to do something like this.

Klay Thompson’s first paycheck in the NBA $35,000, a few cents from the five-year, $190 million contract he signed with the Golden State Warriors in 2019. Still, it was a lot of cash for Thompson at the time. In “Dough Kneaing” by Uninterrupted, Thompson stated that he had passed that first check at a pool table.

“I have it to this day,” he says.

Daniel Norris was 18 when he signed his first MLB contract with the Toronto Blue Jays. It comes with a $2 million signing bonus and an agreement with Nike, ESPN reported. Like many professional athletes, he used his first big salary to buy the car of his dreams, but his selection was unconventional: a 1978 Volkswagen motorhome.

NFL laDainian player Tomlinson used his first big salary to buy his mother a space and a new car.

“She looked for a Cadillac Escalade, so that’s what she’s got,” he told NFL.com. “Other than that, I put my cash in the bank and invested it.”

When MLB player Brandon Wood received a $1.3 million signing bonus in 2003, he was still a teenager.

“My parents had a smart influence on me,” Wood told the Orange County Registry. “They helped me know what to do with that cash because at 18 you don’t know anything. I was told that maybe I just had one car and I had to put the rest away.

Wood did his best to buy his car. He bought a GMC Yukon/Denali, with a luxury stereo and a TV for the back seat.

“That’s what I think I needed when I was 18,” Wood said. “I used the TV five times after I received it.”

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