Walker talked to Yahoo Finance about how he blew his fortune. Here are just some of ways.
He quickly acquired a taste for the finer things and upgraded his entire family to live in multi-million dollar homes that he built from the ground up. His driveways were filled with four to five luxury cars — from Bentleys and BMWs, to his prized $350,000 Maybach. And as one of the most fashionable ballers, Walker never wore the same designer suit twice.
His generosity extended beyond his family to his many friends and acquaintances. From lavish all-expenses-paid trips to luxury gifts for his friends, Walker made sure everyone in his circle enjoyed the lifestyle he led. With his fellow NBA players, Walker gambled extensively – losing $646,900 in just two years.
Even as his spending spiraled out of control, Walker had a plan to put his income to work and bought more than 140 properties along the South Side of Chicago. Whether it was land to build on or commercial and income properties, Walker had a full-range of real estate investments meant to maintain the lifestyle he had built for his family after retiring from the league.
With the housing bubble and bust, Walker found himself defaulting on loans where he was the personal guarantor, losing value on land, and failed to get a handle on the legal issues that followed.
People ask me all the time how can someone lose $100+ million? I use this analogy, when you are making $50k a year, you go to McDonald’s and get you a value meal that cost $5. When you are making $5 million a year, you go to McDonald’s and have to buy the whole crew (yes men, groupies, family & etc) lunch and spend $100. When you have more money you spend more money. Regular guy buys a $35k Honda Accord, but NBA player buys $350k Maybach.
If you aren’t careful, the money will go fast and will end up on Billy Corben’s BROKE 2 documentary.