Every year on July 1, people around the world celebrate a quirky sports holiday known as "Bobby Bonilla Day." That's the day the New York Mets are contractually obligated to pay retired slugger Bobby Bonilla $1.4 million in deferred contract salary – a deal that has now become a symbol of unintentionally bizarre and brilliant financial planning.
Bobby Bonilla Day is all well and good, but we here at Celebrity Net Worth prefer to observe a lesser-known but equally fascinating holiday: Allen Iverson Trust Fund Day. And that holiday is celebrated every year on June 7.
Why June 7? Because that's Allen Iverson's birthday. What are we celebrating? Does Allen receive a big check? Nope. But he does get one year closer to unlocking a $32 million trust fund that he inherits on his 55th birthday, June 7, 2030.
(Photo by Brian Stukes/Getty Images)
Backstory on Allen Iverson's Reebok Trust Fund
[If you want a full breakdown of how this trust fund came to exist, please read this article: How Allen Iverson Scored A Unique Reebok Trust Fund]
Back in 2001, soon after winning the NBA MVP, Allen took a meeting with Reebok executives to strike a long-term endorsement relationship. Reebok came to the table with a very impressive lifetime offer that would allow Allen to continue making lots of money while he played, while also offering a nice little two-part retirement sweetener. Allen accepted what was one of the very first lifetime endorsement contracts in pro sports.
The lifetime contract came with three primary benefits:
- 1: First, Reebok would pay Allen $5-10 million per year as long as he was playing in the NBA. The full amount was dependent on milestones like playoff appearances, championships, All-Star appearances, MVP trophies, etc.
- 2: Secondly, immediately upon retiring, Allen would be paid $800,000 per year for the rest of his life. No obligations, no expectations. Essentially, a pension.
- 3: Third, to absolutely ensure Allen's financial success in his later years, Reebok put $32 million in a trust fund that would sit untouched for the next 29 years.
According to the terms of the deal, Allen would inherit the trust fund on June 7, 2030. His 55th birthday. As I type this article, that magic day is 1,827 days away. Here, we made this handy countdown clock so you can keep track:
Allen Iverson Trust Fund Countdown
Photo by Drew Hallowell/Getty Images
A Trust Revealed in Divorce Court
The world learned about the Reebok trust fund in the wake of Allen's divorce from his longtime wife, Tawanna. Tawanna first filed for divorce in March 2010. At the time of the divorce, Allen was one month away from playing his final NBA game. He was playing for the Memphis Grizzlies on a one-year $160,000 contract.
The divorce took three years to be finalized.
Throughout his career, Iverson's wasteful spending was legendary. He frequently traveled with an entourage of up to 50 people. He showered these same people with luxurious jewelry, expensive cars, and exotic vacations. He was also a bad gambler in both senses of the word. Iverson was known to drop over a million dollars gambling in a single evening in Las Vegas and Atlantic City.
In a December 2012 court filing, Iverson told a judge that he was losing $300,000 EVERY MONTH because his monthly income of $62,500 was far outweighed by his $360,000 monthly expenses. At that rate, he was piling up $3.6 million in debt on an annualized basis.
Of that $360k monthly expenses, $125k went to paying back various creditors, and another large chunk goes to mortgages. Iverson-owned homes in Denver and Atlanta were eventually lost to foreclosure, and a Georgia judge ordered him to repay nearly $900,000 to a local jeweler. Furthermore, we heard stories about Allen's continuing struggle with alcohol and his inability to maintain a job.
Tawanna conceded that Allen was cash-poor at that time, but she also knew about the Reebok trust fund. So she petitioned for a judge to give her half of the $800,000 annual pension and half of the $32 million trust fund when it is distributed in 2030.
Their divorce was finalized in 2013. Interestingly, Allen has claimed in several interviews that they actually reconciled ONE MONTH after the divorce was finalized. Assuming that's true, it's presumable that Allen and Tawanna did legally agree to divide his pension and trust fund, but if they still live as a married couple… does it really matter?
Cheers to Allen Iverson's birthday and the first Allen Iverson Trust Fund Day. Imagine the party Allen will throw for his 55th birthday!
So, How Much Is Allen Iverson Worth?
And for the record, due to all of the above circumstances, it's fairly difficult to place a value on Allen Iverson's net worth. We are currently using a simple round $1 million for his net worth. It's our assumption that he is primarily living off the pension and likely spending most of it every year.
In five years, depending on his relationship and tax status, Allen will receive either $32 million, $16 million, or potentially half of that after taxes. Regardless, it will be a financial reset that few athletes get so late in life.
So happy Allen Iverson Trust Fund Day. Just five more to go until the big payday. We hope there's a cake involved—and maybe some party favors with that Reebok logo.