This article reviews well-known players in the NBA and NFL who are actively investing in the cryptocurrency market.

Written by: Zen, PANews

Recently, retired NFL player Russell Okung reposted an old report from Bleacher Report on the X platform about his acceptance of salary payments in Bitcoin, captioning it: "Society wants to tame you, hoping you become predictable. But greatness requires wildness."

This tweet quickly garnered millions of views, and as Bitcoin broke the $90,000 mark, many began to realize how correct Okung's controversial choice was at the time.

In North American sports, there are many celebrities and athletes like Okung who are passionate about Bitcoin. For example, a report from BR in 2019 stated that NFL quarterback Matt Barkley had requested to be paid in Bitcoin by the San Francisco 49ers and the Cincinnati Bengals, but both requests were denied. Notably, Barkley played for both teams from 2017 to 2018, a time when Bitcoin was far from mainstream acceptance. Now, investing in Bitcoin has become commonplace, and there have been precedents for directly converting salaries into Bitcoin in both the NFL and NBA.

This article by PANews will review well-known NFL and NBA players who are actively investing in the cryptocurrency market, with information sourced from their public statements or overseas media reports. While they have reaped substantial rewards in the crypto industry, they have also promoted the popularization of cryptocurrency through their actions and words.

Spencer Dinwiddie

Despite having switched teams multiple times this year and seeing a decline in his on-court contributions, Dallas Mavericks guard Spencer Dinwiddie has likely seen significant gains from his cryptocurrency investments off the court. This "cryptocurrency pioneer" among NBA players was first introduced to Bitcoin in 2014 by a friend working in finance. However, due to the many "horror stories" of failed investments in the NBA, the then 21-year-old rookie with a salary of only $1 million was hesitant to dive in and chose more traditional and stable real estate investments instead.

In December 2016, Dinwiddie signed a 3-year, $2.9 million contract with the Brooklyn Nets, at which time the price of a Bitcoin was about $775, and it had already doubled by the end of the regular season. During that season, Dinwiddie finally proved his worth and established his position with the Nets, while also deciding he didn't want to miss out on Bitcoin's price growth any longer. In the fall of 2017, as the new NBA season began, Dinwiddie started closely monitoring his investments. Before games, while most players were busy getting into "the zone" in the locker room, he would open the cryptocurrency trading app Coinbase to observe and study the market. As he began to deliver the best performances of his career, Bitcoin's price also skyrocketed, tripling by the end of the year to reach $15,000. Additionally, he began researching some relatively low-profile tokens at the time, such as Tron, from which he earned a 5x return upon exiting.

By December 2018, after nearly achieving All-Star performance, Dinwiddie received a 3-year, $34.36 million contract extension from the Nets. The following year, Dinwiddie overcame official NBA resistance to convert his contract into an investment tool called Dream Fan Shares, through which he planned to sell 90 SD8 tokens or Professional Athlete Investment Tokens (PAInT), but ultimately only sold 10%, far below the $13.5 million target. Furthermore, Dinwiddie co-launched the creator social marketplace Calaxy, which has raised at least $33.5 million.

In October last year, during an interview with renowned sports journalist Michael Scotto, Dinwiddie discussed his post-retirement plans, stating that Calaxy's current valuation is in the nine figures, and if it reaches ten figures in the next cycle, he would "fully enjoy retirement." (Some Chinese sports media mistakenly interpreted this as Dinwiddie disclosing that he owns over $100 million in cryptocurrency assets.) However, even if Dinwiddie does not receive his salary in Bitcoin as rumored, and has never actively disclosed that his cryptocurrency assets exceed nine figures, as a millionaire who bet on Bitcoin and cryptocurrency early on, his returns over the years must be substantial.

Klay Thompson & Andre Iguodala

Left: Andre Iguodala, Right: Klay Thompson

Dinwiddie's current teammate, Klay Thompson, who recently joined the Dallas Mavericks, is currently the most prominent player publicly supporting the receipt of part of his salary in Bitcoin. This former All-Star shooting guard, known for his partnership with Stephen Curry as the "Splash Brothers," stated in a tweet: "I invest in Bitcoin because I believe it is the future of currency."

In January 2022, after suffering from ACL and Achilles injuries and being away from the court for two and a half years, Klay finally announced his return. Perhaps during his recovery and rehabilitation, Klay was recommended by teammate Andre Iguodala. Upon Klay's return, both immediately announced a partnership with Cash App to convert part of their salaries into Bitcoin and donated $1 million worth of BTC to fans. Iguodala tweeted: "I converted part of my salary into Bitcoin using Cash App! Bitcoin is the future, and Klay Thompson and I are both believers in Bitcoin."

That season, Klay's contract income was approximately $40 million, while the details of Iguodala's veteran minimum contract were not disclosed, but it was estimated to be around $3 million. However, as a well-known tech investor in the NBA, Iguodala had already reaped substantial returns through venture capital, allowing him to convert all his income for that season into Bitcoin. According to Buy Bitcoin Worldwide, Iguodala received $2.647 million of his salary in Bitcoin. Klay, who was "led into the door" by Iguodala, should also hold at least a similar magnitude of Bitcoin assets.

Cade Cunningham

Detroit Pistons star Cade Cunningham joined the NBA as the first overall pick in 2021. This mature and highly intelligent rookie seems to have a keen insight into investment and finance as well. He announced an exclusive multi-year partnership with BlockFi during the summer before the season started. As part of the partnership, BlockFi would provide Cunningham with a signing bonus paid directly in Bitcoin to his BlockFi account. "What interests me about cryptocurrency is its usability, democracy, and consensus basis, as well as its ability to evolve over time to meet the changing needs of financial consumers, including myself," Cunningham stated in a press release.

After the FTX collapse led to BlockFi's bankruptcy, many recalled Cunningham's business collaboration with the latter. According to Crain's Detroit Business, a source familiar with the partnership stated that the amount of Bitcoin bonus Cunningham received was small and could be considered negligible compared to the cash endorsement fees he received from BlockFi. Since then, there have been no further updates on Cunningham's cryptocurrency investments. In fact, compared to his five-year, $224 million maximum contract extension with the Pistons, any potential 2 to 3 times Bitcoin returns would indeed be insignificant.

Tyrese Haliburton

Earlier this year, during the annual NBA All-Star Weekend, Coinbase hosted an event called "moonshot," where Indiana Pacers star point guard Tyrese Haliburton was interviewed by CoinDesk. He mentioned that he had heard about Bitcoin a few years ago while in college, and Dinwiddie was the first in the NBA to express his views on it. "The first cryptocurrency I encountered was Ethereum because that was the blockchain I used for NFTs, so I invested heavily in Ethereum. I want to get into Bitcoin because it is the blue-chip stock of cryptocurrencies."

Haliburton stated that due to his personal schedule, he does not engage in day trading, but his brother often does. "So I can imagine taking a large sum from my contract, giving it to my brother for day trading, and keeping an eye on the market's downturn. I can definitely envision that as a possibility for me." Haliburton indeed has the potential to do so—last July, this All-Star guard signed a five-year contract with a maximum value of $260 million with the Pacers.

Scottie Pippen

In July of this year, Scottie Pippen entered the cryptocurrency space. The NBA legend who helped Michael Jordan establish the Bulls dynasty first teased on social media before launching a fan token called Game 5 Ball ($BALL) on the Ethereum blockchain in August, which is tied to the ball used in Game 5 of the 1991 NBA Finals. Shortly after the token was issued, on-chain detective ZachXBT discovered that the developer wallet that created the token contract sold off nearly $330,000 worth of token supply almost immediately after launch, sparking strong backlash from the community. As of November 19, the circulating market cap of $BALL is approximately $5.6 million.

Related: Asking "Ethereum or Solana?", NBA star Pippen, who has issued NFTs, is set to return to the crypto space to make waves.

It is worth mentioning that although Pippen faced criticism and ridicule for his actions related to Game 5 Ball, he "unexpectedly" almost predicted the surge in Bitcoin. In September of this year, Pippen tweeted that Satoshi Nakamoto told him in a strange dream that Bitcoin's price would reach $84,650 on November 5. Ultimately, on November 5, Bitcoin's price was close to $70,000, and a week later, it indeed approached $85,000.

Russell Okung

At the end of 2020, Russell Okung, who joined the Carolina Panthers, announced that he would receive half of his $13 million salary in Bitcoin. However, according to tech media The Verge, the Carolina Panthers confirmed to the media that all teams pay players' salaries in U.S. dollars. The article also stated that Okung's move might have been to promote the Bitcoin Lightning Network payment company Zap, which allows anyone to receive their salary "in Bitcoin" at any time.

Eventually, Okung and Strike, a subsidiary of Zap, announced a partnership that would enable him to receive part of his salary in Bitcoin. Six months later, when Bitcoin's price surged to $60,000 and then quickly fell, he stated that he would not sell his Bitcoin even if the crypto market declined, and he has not publicly disclosed his investment strategy since. Speculation suggests that if Okung still holds the 240 Bitcoins he purchased with half of his 2020 salary, those Bitcoins would be worth over $20.9 million today.

Trevor Lawrence

In April 2021, newly drafted NFL first overall pick Trevor Lawrence signed an agreement with FTX to promote the company's investment app Blockfolio. FTX stated that this was the first deal where the "signing bonus was paid entirely in cryptocurrency." According to USA TODAY, Lawrence's investment portfolio includes mainstream cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum, as well as investments in the Solana blockchain.

In June 2022, as the crypto market entered a bear phase, rumors circulated on social media that Lawrence had converted his entire $24 million signing bonus into cryptocurrency and lost $15 million. Lawrence later clarified on Twitter that these individuals confused the NFL first overall pick's $24 million signing bonus with FTX's signing bonus. According to Bloomberg, the bankruptcy filing of an FTX affiliate stated that Lawrence received a payment of $500,000 in September 2022. Additionally, other athletes who were sued for endorsing FTX include Tom Brady, Stephen Curry, Shaquille O'Neal, Naomi Osaka, and Shohei Ohtani, but these wealthy top athletes seem uninterested in this emerging field and have not disclosed any cryptocurrency-related investments.

Saquon Barkley

"We've seen inflation, and we realize that wealth cannot be preserved. That's why I want to use Bitcoin for my marketing funds." In July 2021, during an appearance on the new YouTube show "Best Business Show" hosted by Pomp Investments founder Anthony Pompliano, New York Giants star running back Saquon Barkley announced that he would work with Strike to receive 100% of all his future endorsement contracts in Bitcoin. Barkley has endorsement deals with well-known brands like Nike, Toyota, and Pepsi. Pompliano analyzed that Barkley's endorsement fees "exceed $10 million annually."

Aaron Rodgers

On November 21, 2021, quarterback Aaron Rodgers tweeted that he had partnered with Square's CashApp to convert an undisclosed portion of his 2021 salary into Bitcoin. Similar to the actions of Klay and Iguodala mentioned above, Rodgers also announced that he would donate $1 million worth of Bitcoin. At that time, the 37-year-old player had signed a four-year, $134 million contract with the Green Bay Packers, earning an average of $33.5 million per season.

Odell Beckham Jr.

"Who still says it was stupid for me to receive my salary in Bitcoin from the Rams?" On November 14, after Russell Okung celebrated the surge in Bitcoin, Odell Beckham Jr. publicly responded to past doubts on X.

On November 22, 2021, wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., playing for the Los Angeles Rams, tweeted that he would work with CashApp to receive his new full salary in Bitcoin. Beckham's contract with the Rams included a $750,000 base salary, a $500,000 signing bonus, and a $3 million incentive, and since he won his first Super Bowl with the team, Beckham ultimately earned this substantial bonus.

Sean Culkin

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Sean Culkin was the first NFL player to announce that he would convert all of his salary into Bitcoin. In April 2021, ESPN reported that Culkin was signed by the Chiefs in February under a reserve/future contract and planned to convert his entire $920,000 salary into Bitcoin. Culkin stated, "I want to do this because I believe Bitcoin will continue to rise in the long term," adding, "In the long run, it is a store of value. The reason Bitcoin is so hard to tame is because of its scarcity. If you look back in history, you will find that it appreciates over time."

However, a month after Culkin announced this plan, he was cut by the Chiefs. Since such contracts are typically non-guaranteed, he may not have received any remaining salary. After that, he did not play for any team again. However, from his laser-eyed profile picture and the background image of him wearing a Bitcoin jersey on his X platform, it is clear that Culkin is indeed one of the few Bitcoin loyalists among athletes.

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