Philadelphia 76ers Young Players at Money Risk

The Philadelphia 76ers roster is a young one, and it may have players that are at a huge risk to be spending too much money.

The Philadelphia 76ers rebuilding process has consisted of getting a lot of young, on-the-rise players, and not that many players older than 30. Because of this, a lot of the players may be at risk of money issues either now in their careers, or years after they retire.

Antoine Walker joined Fox Business during the month of April to shed some light on a harsh truth in the NBA — a lot of players don’t know how to handle all the money they make. Walker’s first contract was one for $5 million over the course of three years, but he had a net gain of $105 million over the course of his NBA career.

Walker, since retiring, has filed for bankruptcy and obviously had issues with managing the large amounts of money that came his way. This is tough, because on one hand it’s hard to feel bad for players who have all the resources at their fingertips to obtain a financial advisor, but at the same time, you wonder if more can be done by their employer, the NBA, to warn them about the issues of spending too much money.

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Walker admitted that he pretty much became a millionaire overnight and had no idea how to handle the money. He said he didn’t know much about taxes, and clearly didn’t understand that the money he made would have to stretch far beyond just the longevity of his NBA career.

On a roster with mostly young players, Walker’s story seems to be one that could be of danger. With not that many veterans around to guide young guys on and off the floor, there will be little voice telling the Sixers’ players to take care of their money. Already, we’ve seen issues with the fame and money getting to players’ heads. Jahlil Okafor was caught doing 108 miles per hour in a sports car, and Nerlens Noel is being sued for trashing a very expensive apartment before his lease was up.

The Sixers did try to combat this potential problem this season by bringing in veteran Elton Brand as a member of the team. Brand did a lot of Okafor specifically, reportedly letting him use his Land Rover during the winter months so Okafor would not have to buy a car just for the snow. Although Okafor obviously has the capital to get himself a winter car, things like that will go a long way for Okafor in showing him that he doesn’t always have to splurge. That’s the type of leadership these young guys will need to keep their lives on track, but it’s not clear if Brand will be back next season to help out.

The NBA, according to Fox, gives rookies a “crash course” on finances, but Walker thinks more needs to be done, and is teaming up with financial advisors to attempt to help young athletes out with finances.

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For a team like the Sixers, a program like this would benefit their players a lot. I hope, if Walker is successful in getting this program implemented into the NBA, that the young players on the Sixers will take advantage of it.