The NBA pre-draft is generally viewed as an event where players learn about what life is like as an NBA player. There’s no doubt that oftentimes, players need to be prepared for what life is like when having a lot of money/finances.
John Salley has recently told a story about how the NBA uses the pre-draft as a setup to educate future NBA players on not falling for women with bad intentions. He claimed that the NBA would have attractive women in “flight attendant outfits” ask NBA players for keys to their room, and when given those keys would take all of the players’ stuff, only for the situation to be revealed as a set-up a few days later.
The NBA pre-draft is a set-up… They have 3 of the hottest girls in flight attendant outfits walk in and go “oh you’re such and such… give me a key and I’ll meet you in your room.” Dudes are like “My room, 7:25”.
When they get back to their room, everything is gone…
By the 3rd day they open it, all their stuff is on stage and the girls come out as actresses, and they are embarassed. It’s better to be embarassed in front of us… and explain the mistake.
There is no doubt that this is a solid way to teach players valuable lessons, so they don’t have to learn them the hard way. While athletes are often economically better off than regular people there are also certain unique pitfalls that they can face. We’ve heard of players being robbed frequently in the past.
While obviously, some people are trustworthy, oftentimes it is wise to be wary. You never know what a stranger’s intentions towards you and your possessions are, and if one is alert, one can possibly prevent a terrible situation and loss of assets or finances.
