NBA legend Bill Russell gave Charles Barkley a call and yelled at him for complaining about the high taxes he pays
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Getting into the NBA is not a simple task. However, once you make it in, it guarantees a secure future for you, provided you spend carefully. In the NBA, the minimum salary that a player earns, which is a minimum deal, is over $900,000. In comparison, the average income of a household in the USA is $67,521(in 2020, as per the government census).
Since the players are earning so much, they are liable to pay taxes according to their salaries. Stephen Curry, in 2017, earned an NBA-high $34.7 million from the Warriors but only took home $15.26 million from the same. The rest went into taxes and fees. Something similar happened to LeBron James in 2017 as well. These are just specific cases of that one year. Players have been paying heavy taxes for a long time and would continue to pay the same.
In the 1980s, Charles Barkley had to do the same, and he went and complained about the same on National TV. However, his complaining didn’t go on for long, thanks to a phone call from an NBA legend.
Bill Russell knocked sense into Charles Barkley regarding taxes
In the 1980s, Charles Barkley had made his impact on the NBA and was slowly proving his worth. Thanks to the same, he was getting more money than most players of his time. Starting the 1988-89 season, Barkley was already earning a six-figure salary from the Sixers.
However, more money meant more taxes, and that didn’t sit well with him. He complained about the same on National TV, which led to NBA legend Bill Russell calling him. Barkley narrated their conversation as follows:
‘ He says, ‘Shut the hell up and listen to me.’ I say ‘Okay, Mr. Russell.’ He says ‘Where did you grow up?’ I said, ‘I grew up in Alabama.’ He says, ‘You went to public school?’ I said, ‘Yes sir, I went to public school.’ He said, ‘Did the cops ever come in your neighborhood?’
— DubNation(2022 NBA CHAMPIONS) (@dubs3000) July 19, 2022
He says ‘I saw your black ass on TV talking about you paying a high rate of taxes.'” “He says, ‘Son, let me tell you something. Just because you’re making a lot of money now, be happy you’re making a lot of money and they can tax you a lot.
— DubNation(2022 NBA CHAMPIONS) (@dubs3000) July 19, 2022
But there was a time you were poor, when the cops came to your neighborhood, when you went to public school, somebody else was paying those taxes too.'”
— DubNation(2022 NBA CHAMPIONS) (@dubs3000) July 19, 2022
“I said ‘You know what Mr. Russell, you’re right.’ And from that day forward, that was in the late ’80s, I ain’t never complained about my taxes. I’m glad to make a lot of money. I learned a valuable lesson.”
Chuck learned the value of those taxes, and claims to not have complained about them since.
