In an interview with Maverick Carter of the Uninterrupted, Lebron James talked finances, the value of money in his life and revealed that the financial decision that he regrets most is the purchase of a home. But not just any home.
“I bought a house in Las Vegas,” Lebron laughs.
At the time, the Cleveland Cavaliers were in Vegas hosting the team’s training camp and James, just 22-years-old, jumped at the idea of purchasing a home there.
“I’m young, I don’t know. I’m there for a week, I’m having a ball. They’re playing also having a good time. I’m 21-22, my family is coming out, they love it. Let’s buy a house.”
Being the King comes with great responsibility.
Of course, James' financial blunder is just one instance in a long line of athletes making regretful purchases. Having that much money presents a certain freedom that can make way for recklessness. A fine example of that is when Mike Tyson famously bought three Bengal tigers. Even Bubba Watson, a golfer, flexed his paycheck and purchased General Lee's 1996 Dodge Charger for $110,000. There are even instances of entire teams pushing the limits of reasonable buying pratices. For instance, a Miami Heat team that feautured Lebron, racked up a $200,000 bar tab after winning the NBA Finals in 2012. So perhaps Lebron's regret is not as comparatively substantial.
Over the next couple of years, many athletes will be repeating LeBron’s mistakes, but it might not work out so poorly. Of course, we’re sure many Golden Knights players have already done so and will continue to buy property as the franchise thrives, but when the Oakland Raiders switch cities a whole new batch will be moving to town as well.
Only time will tell if it will be the worst or best decision for their lives.
