<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Sources tell me that Bucks center Larry Sanders recently told some Bucks officials that he doesn't want to play basketball anymore.</p>— Gery Woelfel (@GeryWoelfel) <a href="https://twitter.com/GeryWoelfel/status/552202448161759232">January 5, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Some friends of Sanders told me last summer they were concerned Sanders wasn't committed to basketball and wanted to explore other options.</p>— Gery Woelfel (@GeryWoelfel) <a href="https://twitter.com/GeryWoelfel/status/552203342274121728">January 5, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> I guess those personal problems that Kidd held him out for were related to this. Guy is potentially leaving 20m on the table to pursue something else. We'll see what happens.
I hope hes utilized his money wisely because he's never going to get the opportunity again to make 20m in a few years.
People might criticize him for this, but honestly how many people have left their jobs, guaranteed financial income, because they wanted to pursue something else? It doesn't happen often, but people do take that jump. As long as he gets his financial life together he can pretty much retire now if he wanted to, or pursue something else.
Yeah, I remembered an SI article about him. http://www.si.com/vault/2013/04/15/106309759/the-larry-sanders-show
Given that this is a conscious decision on his part, he clearly can pre-plan his retirement. And the NBA contract structure makes it so that he can basically give 50% effort for the duration of the contract and the Bucks still have to pay him full salary. I wouldn't doubt he'll get most if not all of that $44mil contract. Still quite weird though. It's strange a player can have enough motivation to make it and succeed in the NBA, only to decide he doesn't care. Generally speaking such players would never play well enough to get a big contract.
It'll be a massive dick move to say you're gonna leave and just half ass it to pick up a paycheck. There should be a mutual buyout.
There has to be some issues behind the scenes. No rationale person would walk away from that sort of money playing a game. As you mentioned its weird he be successful enough to get the contract, the almost as if a switched got turned off he just doesn't care anymore.
He's already rich. Not everyone cares about getting even richer at the expense of wasting (in his mind) his/her precious time on this rock doing something he doesn't want to do. Money really doesn't buy happiness. I hope the guy does what really makes him happy.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>I'm told this is not the first time Sanders has said he'd like to walk away from the NBA, that he wanted Bucks to buy him out.</p>— NetsDaily.com (@NetsDaily) <a href="https://twitter.com/NetsDaily/status/552221574166626305">January 5, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
As long as he's taken care of his finances he should be fine, I guess im more getting at the long list of former nba/nfl players that have gone broke
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p>Not trying to dispute anyone's reporting, but the idea that Larry Sanders told anyone he didn't want to play any more was news to Larry.</p>— Steve Kyler (@stevekylerNBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/stevekylerNBA/status/552221782447763456">January 5, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> lmao
I hear you and I don't know how he has handled the money he has made. I just tend to pull for folks who turn down the money and fame for something that is closer to their soul. If he is playing in China in two years then he did it wrong.