For many basketball players, making it to the NBA represents the opportunity to provide financial security for their families and loved ones. There are several players in the NBA today who overcame a difficult upbringing and have gone on to secure themselves and their families lives when it comes to their financial situation.
Derrick Rose went out of his way to make sure that his loved ones were taken care of and well-compensated financially speaking. When Rose signed his lucrative contract with Adidas for a shoe deal, he made sure that his brother and best friend were financially taken care of.
As revealed by Bleacher Report a few years ago, along with his own deal that brought him $12 million per season between 2012 and 2017, Rose ensured that his brother would make $250-300,000 for his role as a consultant. And for his best friend, Rose ensured that he would make $50-75,000 a year for his role as a consultant as well.
Jon Wertheim of Sports Illustrated reported the publication obtained Rose’s 40-page contract with Adidas that showed the point guard making an annual retainer of $12 million per season from 2012-13 through 2016-17 and $11 million this season.
“It also included annual royalties of up to $6.25 million per year, as much as $4.8 million in annual appearance fees and use of a private plane,” Wertheim wrote. In addition to Rose, his older brother, Reggie, makes between $250,000 and $300,000 a year from the deal as a consultant, and his best friend, Randall Hampton, takes in between $50,000 and $75,000 a year for “consulting.”
While the payments for Rose given his current status in the NBA seem borderline absurd, Wertheim pointed out there was a timing element involved in all of this.
Rose re-signed with Adidas in February 2012 soon after he won the MVP at 22 years old for his hometown team and right when Kobe Bryant was entering the twilight of his career and LeBron James was dealing with the fallout from his decision to go from his own hometown team in the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Miami Heat. Rose, who was an explosive playmaker in the open floor and routinely thrilled fans with his dizzying speed and rim-rattling dunks, seemed like a sure thing marketability-wise, and Adidas responded in kind to keep him aboard.
Clearly, it was important for Rose to make sure that his brother and best friend would be in a position of financial security, and his Adidas deal was the best way to make sure that they earned some money for the role they have played in his life and his career.
Rose himself has had a very difficult career trajectory over the years. Once considered the future of the NBA after he became the league’s youngest MVP, Rose suffered a horrific injury that hampered the rest of his career. His former teammate Joakim Noah even compared the injury to 9/11. Since then, he has been able to mount a career resurgance and is now a reliable player for the New York Knicks.
The toll Rose’s career has taken on him has been significant, as he once heartbreakingly told a fan that he wasn’t ‘the man’ anymore when a fan tried praising him. But Rose has bounced back and can be proud of the way he has handled his career and his play over the last few years.
