One of the main problems to all of this is that it's hard to tell a young man what's financially right or wrong, because most of them think they know it all. Plus, with so many fans, ass lickers and cash coming in it makes the task even harder. Could happen to anyone here, remember when you were a 22 year old - remember how nothing fazed you..... Maturity is the best way to handle money but by the time these fellas are properly mature, at 30+, most of them have seen their better days and the cash isn't what it was....
we live in fast times. it use to be shirt sleeves to shirt sleeves in three generations. now it is within one lifetime or sometimes within a few years in which fortunes are made and lost. what is interesting that pro athletes must know about the financial failure of other athletes. yet the lessons are ignored. It might be similar to the risk youths take because they feel they are immortal.
Prejudice can make a man say and do some ignorant things. Kon is an example of this and sadly he speaks for many on this site.
I am not defending dumb rich athletes but Tyson never made that much money. That is just what Don King says Tyson earns, he just never actually pays him out. A key problem with Don King's boxers is that on paper they are shown to make X dollars but only receive a fraction of X. They spend under the pretense that they have X dollars coming to them and then reality hits. Then the IRS comes at them, for taxes on X dollars. This is why many boxers at a high enough level start their own promotion to represent themselves.
They all needed someone like me to be their financial and investment advisor... but unless you're "connected" you never get a shot at those who need it most. Of course, they wouldn't have liked my "message"...
A few months back Clark Howard interviewed one of the Atlanta Braves. He told the guy he needed to save over 50%, I think it was 65%, of his take home pay because his expected playing career was short. The player was shocked but interested in the advice.