NBA Legend Kevin Garnett Literally Hid His Money Under His Mattress Before Learning How To Invest

Everyone who reaches a certain age looks back and cringes at some of the money management decisions they made as a younger person. NBA Legend Kevin Garnett is no exception. During a recent appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, the former Boston Celtic admitted to hiding his money under his mattress as a younger player because he didn't know anything about investing or financial management.

Garnett told Kimmel, "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, the South Carolina native resorted to a money management system that was very popular in rural America for decades: he would hide his earnings under his mattress.

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This peculiar method of money management dates back to The Great Depression when bank closures were very common. This was especially true in rural areas of Garnett's native South Carolina. There was no FDIC to insure bank deposits if the bank became insolvent and their clients often lost everything when they closed. As a result, many people opted to hide their money under the mattress because it was "safer" there than in the bank.

It's a funny story but it illustrates the potential pitfalls of making millions of dollars per year as a young person. Garnett was one of the first players to jump straight to the NBA from high school without attending college, so his lack of financial acumen was no surprise. Nevertheless, he saved his money the best way he knew how.

Unlike many of his peers who entered the NBA at a young age, Garnett was always frugal.

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However, he didn't yet understand how to make money work for him by investing. So, saving money under the mattress may not have been the most efficient method, but it indicated Garnett understood the importance of putting something away for a "rainy day." Garnett said he spent about ten years saving his money this way.

It's difficult to imagine how much money Kevin Garnett had stuffed under the mattresses at his mansion when you consider that he earned an estimated $330 million in his NBA career. However, Garnett developed into an astute investor as he matured. Garnett retired in 2016 but he had made arrangements to defer some of his salary and earned $5 million per year in passive income until 2024.

Although Garnett transitioned from saving his money beneath his mattress to more traditional investments, the process didn't always go so smoothly.  Court records show Garnett sued his then-accounting firm Welenken CPAs for allegedly facilitating the unauthorized removal of $77 million from his bank account during his NBA career. The case was eventually settled and the terms were not disclosed.  

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Fortunately for Garnett, many of his other investments and financial planning moves worked out a lot better. According to the Los Angeles Times, Garnett purchased a beachfront property in Malibu for $6.4 million in 2003 that he sold for nearly triple the price before all the construction was completed. 

Garnett followed that up in 2020 by becoming part of a group seeking to buy the Minnesota Timberwolves, the team that originally drafted him. Although that effort was unsuccessful, Garnett's financial future is very well secured thanks to his other investments. The CelebrityNetWrorth and Sportskeeda websites estimate Garnett's net worth between $120 million to $130 million. It's safe to assume he's not hiding under his mattress anymore.

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