For years, two-time NBA champion J.R. Smith spent recklessly, splurging on clubs and lavish clothing, and using his $90 million NBA earnings for team and league fines. Now, he regrets not giving more to his community and advises young people to avoid his mistakes.
“I could have fed my whole community 10 times over with the money I was just [paying in fines for being] late on the bus,” Smith, 36, said in a February episode of the I Am Athlete podcast, hosted by former NFL player Brandon Marshall.
One of Smith’s major sources of remorse, he explained, is having spent substantial sums of money at clubs instead of directing at least a portion of those funds towards philanthropic endeavors.
“You know how many people you can change [their] lifestyle with $10 million in our hood?” Smith said. “We’d rather go throw $60,000 in the strip club … than go feed 2,500 people in the hood.”
Ex-NBA star J.R. Smith regrets his old spending habits: ‘I could have fed my whole community 10 times over’ https://t.co/Yo70iXGzQF
— CNBC (@CNBC) September 16, 2023
