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“I had no money, it wasn’t fun!” – Gilbert Arenas speaks about the pitfalls of getting huge sums of money as a young adult

Arun Sharma
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“I didn’t want the pressure of following John Stockton’s footsteps in Utah!”: Gilbert Arenas opens up about signing a $60 million deal with the Washington Wizards after just 2 years in the NBA despite being offered more by the Utah Jazz

Gilbert Arenas speaks about his bad financial affairs as a young adult, and how he got out of crippling debt.

Gilbert Arenas was a stellar player for a while – even the great Kobe Bryant had a tough time guarding him. A wily point guard who could draw fouls, Arenas was a threat from the free throw line just as he was from beyond the arc. While he made terrible choices in his personal and financial life, it did not affect him too much on the court.

From blowing all his rookie salary check on extravagance to bringing a gun to the locker room, Agent Zero was never away from the limelight.

As a young black adult who came from Florida, he was always aware of the riches around him, and felt like he was missing out on it. When he first got his paycheck after being drafted, he spent it on a Cadillac Escalade with some “Pimp my Ride” level customization.

He spent so much on it that he could barely drive it around – he had no money for gas. Arenas lived on a college level budget while playing in the best league in the world – such was his deplorable state of affairs.

We’ve seen a lot of athletes go broke even after earning so much, Arenas did not end up like one of them. He turned it around, and although he was not as astute as Shaq, he didn’t up like Allen Iverson either.

Also read: “Who the f**k is FICA?”: When rookie Shaquille O’Neal found out about the federal payroll tax the hard way – through his bank manager’s office

Gilbert Arenas could have been one of the greats – he destroyed it all by himself

No chill Gil was an Adidas sponsored athlete – he even had two shoes that were decent enough. All of that went to smoke when he decided to bring a gun to the locker room – he figuratively shot himself in the foot. No amount of talent can beat out basic human etiquette, and such violations will not be tolerated in the NBA.

Gilbert could have been a hall of famer with the career he’s had. But there is no way the NBA would let something like this slide. Not a lot of athletes can keep their private lives private like Kawhi Leonard. Spending money like he was a millionaireeven before he was, stunting for someone he didn’t know. All of that only brought him ruin, something he dug himself out of.

Also Read: “I don’t celebrate 7th placed Lakers, I celebrate Steph Curry”: Shaquille O’Neal snubs his former team and is now rooting for the Warriors to win the 2022 Championship

About the author

Arun Sharma

Arun Sharma

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Arun Sharma is an NBA Editor at The SportsRush. A double degree holder and a digital marketer by trade, Arun has always been a sports buff. He fell in love with the sport of basketball at a young age and has been a Lakers fan since 2006. What started as a Kobe Bryant obsession slowly turned into a lifelong connection with the purple and gold. Arun has been an ardent subscriber to the Mamba mentality and has shed tears for a celebrity death only once in his life. He believes January 26, 2020, was the turning point in the passage of time because Kobe was the glue holding things together. From just a Lakers bandwagoner to a basketball fanatic, Arun has spent 16 long years growing up along with the league. He thinks Stephen Curry has ruined basketball forever, and the mid-range game is a sight to behold. Sharma also has many opinions about football (not the American kind), F1, MotoGP, tennis, and cricket.

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