New York is home to some of the greatest ballers to ever grace the basketball court. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bernard King, Julius Erving are living legends in their own right, but we have to give the King of New York crown to Michael Jordan. We understand that the Jumpman might have spent his adolescent years in North Carolina and considers himself a Carolinian, but the truth is Sir Airness was actually born in Brooklyn. Not to mention, he's also the greatest professional basketball player to walk the planet.
Many can attempt to disprove MJ's GOAT status using stats and numbers, but if you weren't around to witness Michael Jordan single-handedly take over a basketball and berate his opposition into submission, you might want to sit this one out. In his fifteen-year playing career, Mike racked up a total of six championships (both in the form of three-peats), six NBA Finals MVPs, five regular-season MVPs, fourteen NBA All-Star selections, and an endless list of additional accolades that have inspired every generation after him to pick up a basketball. During Michael Jordan's prime, there wasn't a kid alive who didn't want to like Mike.
Not all celebrities have fame and fortune, some are just famous – and in a ton of debt. They came from rags to riches, then went back to rags. Whether they’ve filed bankruptcy, ended up in court, or just can’t stop spending, celebrities mismanage their money just like everyone else. They just hide it well.
50 Cent coined the term “wanksta,” then “partied like it was his birthday” until he filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2015. The rapper was said to be anywhere between $10 million and $50 million in debt. In 2016, a federal bankruptcy court judge in Connecticut approved a plan for the founder of G-Unit to pay his debts back. He was able to get his bankruptcy discharged in February of the following year.
Following a 45-year-long career in Hollywood, acting in more than 70 films, actor Gary Busey found himself in more debt than he was worth. In 2012, it was reported that Busey owed between $500,000 and $1 million worth of debt, but only had $50,000 to his name. The 74-year-old actor owed money to hospitals, banks, the L.A. Waterworks District, and even a storage company. He filed Chapter 7 bankruptcy that same year. Despite his longstanding career in Hollywood, Busey's net worth is now only $500,000.
Burt Reynolds is still worth five million dollars, but his battles with debt date back more than 20 years. Between bad investments and a pricey divorce from actress Loni Anderson, the 1970s superstar had to deal with over $10 million in debt and decided to file Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1996. While testifying in a 1994 custody hearing, the South Florida native said he spent $40 million getting through his divorce.
The former Hollywood bad boy, Charlie Sheen owes the IRS nearly $5 million. But that's not all. In 2016, his net worth was reportedly still as high as $150 million, but he was nonetheless $12 million in debt at the time – including mortgages, legal fees, and taxes. That same year, Debt.com reported Sheen owed nearly $300,000 on an American Express card alone.