After Earning $116 Million In The NBA, Divorce Court Filing Reveals Trevor Ariza's Lackluster Current Financial Situation

Trevor Ariza spent 18 seasons in the NBA, played for 10 teams, won a championship with Kobe Bryant's Lakers, and grossed over $116 million in career salary. At his peak, he was the quintessential "3-and-D" wing every contender coveted: long, athletic, playoff-tested, and reliable enough to cash eight-figure contracts from multiple franchises.

This massive financial footprint makes the numbers in his latest divorce-related court filing particularly jarring. According to an income and expense declaration filed in his ongoing legal battle with ex-wife Bree Anderson Ariza, the former NBA star reported making just $2,316 last month working as a trainer for the disabled and generally has a lackluster financial portfolio (compared to his career earnings)…

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From Generational Wealth to a Tight Budget

Drafted 43rd overall by the New York Knicks in 2004, Ariza carved out an incredibly lucrative career as an elite role player. Over nearly two decades, he played for franchises like the Lakers, Rockets, and Wizards, winning a ring in 2009 and later signing major contracts worth $34 million, $32 million, and $25 million. By retirement, his gross career earnings totaled $116,874,668.

However, gross career earnings do not equal permanent liquidity. Taxes, agent fees, lifestyle maintenance, and family obligations rapidly dilute that total. In his latest filing, Ariza paints a picture of severe post-retirement cash-flow issues, where his monthly cash influx is vastly outpaced by his expenses.

In a typical recent month, Trevor has made around $6,000 working as a physical trainer for the disabled, but, for whatever reason, he only earned $2,316 from this job in a recent month. Interestingly, he makes around $667 per month on average from Buffalo Wild Wings. Not really sure what's generating this income. Maybe an appearance fee? Or maybe it's a minority investor in a BWW franchise? He holds $50,000 in his bank account and owns around $2.5 million worth of real estate.

Ariza's $11,600 living expenses cover a crowded household that includes his girlfriend, her two children, his 14-year-old son, and his aunt. The expenses break down evenly into $2,000 chunks for healthcare, groceries, utilities, education, and auto costs, plus another $1,000 for clothing and cleaning.

Here's a full breakdown of the income, expenses, and assets Trevor disclosed:

The Post-NBA Support Battle

The core of the legal dispute hinges on a dilemma many retired professional athletes face: adjusting court-ordered support payments once the athletic paychecks dry up. Ariza is actively trying to reduce his support obligations, arguing that his current financial reality looks nothing like his prime earning years.

Earlier in the dispute, Ariza reported a negative bank balance of roughly $230,000. While his cash situation has slightly improved, he emphasizes that his assets are tied up in illiquid real estate. He told the court:

"I've been exploring deals, trying everything to create income. Nothing stable has come through. Things changed since we finalized this."

Meanwhile, Ariza claims his ex-wife refuses to contribute financially despite being fully capable of working, adding further friction to the ongoing case.

Reminder, 60% Of NBA Players Do NOT Go Broke

One quick note before we go: Whenever a story like this pops up, some of the coverage and social chatter will inevitably reference the supposed statistic that 60% of NBA players go broke within five years of retirement.

That 60% stat (which is sometimes repeated as 80%) IS NOT TRUE AT ALL!!! It's completely made up!

That dumb stat traces back to a 2009 Sports Illustrated article that concluded that percentage by citing "reports from a host of sources" including athletes, agents, players' associations and financial advisers. In other words, it was not based on a peer-reviewed study, a bankruptcy dataset, or a rigorous accounting of former NBA players' finances. It was just a bunch of people making hunches.

The best hard data we have on actual athlete bankruptcies comes from a 2015 National Bureau of Economic Research study. That study looked at actual bankruptcy filings made by NFL players who were drafted between 1996 and 2003. That study found that 1.9% of NFL players in that group filed for bankruptcy within two years of retirement, and 15.7% had filed within 12 years. Oh… and those numbers – 1.9% and 15.7% –  are almost exactly the same percentages you would find with the average non-athlete population! In other words, athletes do not go broke in any statistically abnormal way at all!