Kevin Garnett Hid His Money Under A Mattress After Making The NBA

'I did this for two years,' the NBA Hall of Famer admitted.

Kevin Garnett wasn’t “financially savvy” during his early years playing in the NBA, as he avoided placing his money in the bank and opted instead to hide it under his bed mattress.

According to AfroTech, while appearing on “Jimmy Kimmel Live” several years ago, the NBA Hall of Famer admitted to not depositing his checks but cashing them and keeping them in an unconventional way.

Garnett, who was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame back in 2020, told the late-night host about his beginnings as an NBA player, not realizing how financially illiterate he was.

“I was kind of raised with a certain pedigree and mindset, so I wasn’t introduced to wires or just fintech. I wasn’t financially savvy. I didn’t know about direct deposit. I didn’t know none of this.”

“So, when I would get my check, I’d go cash it and you know, bring it home and I would put it under my mattress. So I did this for two years.”

The former Minnesota Timberwolves player finally got it together as he ended up making $334,304,240 when he played in the NBA before retiring for good in 2016. Several years ago, it was reported that the former Brooklyn Nets forward was getting paid $5 million a year from the Boston Celtics since he retired, as he had a deferred contract that ended last year.

During his career, Garnett averaged 17.8 points, 10.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.4 blocks per game and had a shooting percentage of 49.7%. He was named the NBA’s most valuable player for the 2003-04 season and the league’s defensive player of the year four years later.

Less than two years ago, he launched a 3-on-3 street basketball league named STR33T through a joint venture between his Big Ticket Sports and the Pro League Network (PLN), Garnett’s new tournament series, STR33T, takes place over four weeks, and feature men’s, women’s, and co-ed teams.

“HoopItUp is the leader in 3×3, and I’m excited to work with the PLN team to create a professional series with STR33T that gives the incredible 3×3 players a major platform to show what they can do to fans across the country,” Garnett said.

HoopItUp and Big Ticket Sports are owned by Garnett. A HoopIt Up tournament is scheduled for Jan.19 in San Antonio.

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