Klay Thompson Burned $20 Million of His $37 Million Salary in the ‘Crypto Bubble’, Joining Shaquille O’Neal in the FTX Debacle

Achyuth Jayagopal | 14/11/2022
Klay Thompson Burned $20 Million of His $37 Million Salary in the ‘Crypto Bubble’, Joining Shaquille O’Neal in the FTX Debacle

Cryptocurrencies and Bitcoins in particular have been the talk of the town for quite some time. Since the Web3 craze hit the mainstream, various investment opportunities have presented themselves and investments scaling billions have been made in them.

Various NBA stars too count themselves among patrons of Bitcoin and Crypto investments. Golden State Warriors stars Klay Thompson and Andre Iguodala are two athletes who have been at the forefront of such investments.

Also read: “Anthony Davis for Klay Thompson and Draymond Green”: Stephen A. Smith Proposes Wild Lakers-Warriors Trade

Earlier in 2022, both Klay and Andre had made it public that they were going to receive part of their salaries in Bitcoin. While the percentage wasn’t revealed, it was still a big decision by both stars – especially considering the volatility associated with Bitcoins.

I’m excited to announce I’m taking part of my salary in BITCOIN w. Cash App! Bitcoin is the future, @klaythompson and I are both believers. To make bitcoin more accessible, we’re giving out $1M in bitcoin back to fans today. Drop your $cashtag w. #PaidInBitcoin & follow @CashApp

However, with an implosion surrounding Crypto giant FTX, the valuation of cryptocurrencies has dipped at an alarming rate. And it would appear Thompson and Andre also stand to lose $20 million as per CryptoCoinApps in the back of the recent crash.

How bad is the Crypto investment looking for Klay Thompson and Andre Iguodala?

At the time of their announcement of taking part in their payments in cryptocurrencies, Andre and Klay would have been feeling pretty good about their investment. Bitcoin was valued somewhere between $35,000 and $43,000 at the time.

Today? The cryptocurrency has seen its value fall to around $16,500, with a further dip expected. That amounts to a dip in value greater than 50% from their initial investment. That’s quite something and can amount to huge sums depending on what percentage of salaries the duo invested in Bitcoins.

Klay Thompson was guaranteed a sum of $37,980,720 for 2021-22. Andre Iguodala on the other hand earned around $2,641,691. Regardless of the percentage accepted by both stars, considerable losses are guaranteed to be accrued by the duo.

It definitely must come as a relief to the duo that they have at least a championship to show for their efforts from 2021-22. That has got to reduce the sting of losing a considerable chunk of hard-earned money to a bad investment.

Will the duo continue to hold on to their investment, or would they be planning to sell and start afresh? Them and them alone can enlighten us on the topic.

Have other NBA stars also lost money with the FTX collapse sparking a fall in cryptocurrency valuations across the board?

It would appear that Klay and Andre aren’t the only NBA stars who stand to lose big sums as a result of the FTX collapse. Fellow “Splash Brother” Stephen Curry looks set to lose out on a fortune too.

This comes on the back of Steph’s decision to become an investor and holder of equity at FTX. The baby-faced assassin is set to take up a considerable loss from this investment of his, with FTX plummeting majorly and closing in on insolvency.

Shaquille O’Neal was also a promoter of FTX. The big man is widely renowned for his smart investments, but may just have to write this one off as a bad decision.

NBA stars aren’t the only ones affected as the Miami Heat franchise appears to have taken quite the hit too. The Heat had even sold the naming rights to their stadium to FTX and that long-term partnership seems to have met a premature end too.

One can only imagine that the slew of NBA investments in the crypto sphere shall see a decline. With various high-profile players attracting losses, the wariness surrounding crypto investments shall be at an all-time high in the NBA.

Also read: “I’m All-in!”: Amidst FTX’s 76% Plunge, $400 Million Worth Shaquille O’Neal’s ‘Bet’ on the Crypto Exchange

Post Edited By: Jatin Hasija
Andre Iguodala Golden State Warriors Klay Thompson Shaquille O'Neal Stephen Curry

About the author

Achyuth Jayagopal

Achyuth Jayagopal is a creative writer with The Sportsrush. After previous freelance dabbles in the industry, Achyuth has authored over 300 pieces for TSR. Having followed the game of basketball for a considerable period, he pledges his allegiance to Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks. Beyond speaking his mind on all things basketball, Achyuth is a Sports and Gaming Lawyer who is an ardent Chelsea fan and takes a shine to the culinary world and travelling too.

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