Unlike Shaquille O’Neal’s $1,000,000 Splurge, Scoot Henderson Only Spent $330,000 From His First Million

The 19-year-old Scoot Henderson might soon become the new face of the Portland Trail Blazers. The number 3 pick comes into a team that is set to lose long-term star, Damian Lillard. Scoot already has experience starring for the NBA G League Ignite and was paid a cool million for his 2 years. Speaking to GQ Sports back in February, Scoot revealed that he only ended up spending around $330,000 from his $1,000,000 payment. The spending included mostly necessities, but also a range of luxuries that still left him with more than half of the amount. This comes contrary to what NBA legend Shaquille O’Neal had done. The Lakers legend had managed to spend all of his $1 million within a few minutes of actually receiving it.

Henderson skipped the final year of high school to join the G League and is already a big star. The fact that he was drafted by the Trail Blazers at number 3 was no surprise, which makes it even more surprising that he managed to control his spending. Scoot showed a surprisingly mature approach despite almost being guaranteed big payments in the near future.

Scoot Henderson’s incredible spending of the first $1 million he earned paints a surprising picture

Youngsters who make it to the NBA often end up receiving huge amounts of money. This is true, especially for players who are joining from college.

Scoot Henderson however, has been a star for almost two years in the G League. His two-year deal led to a $1 million payment, which became the first ever million that he ever earned.

Scoot’s spending was nominal. It included around $50k that he spent on clothing, along with a Prada bag and other food expenses that he estimated at around $10k. This was followed by a $10k splurge on video games, with the same amount going on a vacation for his family.

Finally, Scoot ended up buying his own home, his first, back in Georgia, which cost him around $250k. Finally, he also kickstarted his family business of sports training facilities, “NextPlay360,” which set him back a further $130k. Overall, Scoot spent around $460k and ended up saving a whopping $540k.

This was contrary to how Shaq approached the situation. According to CNBC, O’Neal bought 3 Mercedes, one for himself, one for his father, and another smaller one for his mother. He followed it up by paying off his mom’s house. The rest of the money was carefully spent buying jewelry, such as diamond rings and earrings for himself.

Scoot Henderson’s mature business approach

There is little doubt that the way in which Henderson approached the first million he ever earned was surprising. Instead of splurging after receiving such a huge amount, Henderson decided to save up for his future.

That can prove especially important in the world of sports, with no guarantee over the future. While Scoot will now earn almost $9.8 million in his first NBA season alone, his earnings will be close to $45 million at the end of his 4-year rookie contract.

That is incredible money, and considering Henderson’s careful approach, he can effectively stop working for the rest of his life. If not, Henderson is off to a good start as far as building a financial legacy is concerned. Shaq, despite initially spending his first million quickly, knows more than a thing or two about that.