Every American athlete dreams of playing their favorite sport on the biggest stage as a pro athlete. Although pro athletes are blessed with a gift, some choose to toss it all away and commit crimes, losing out on millions of dollars and years of their life now spent in prison.
Most recently, Josh Giddey, a 21-year-old star on the NBA team Oklahoma Thunder, was allegedly sexually involved with, at the time, a 15-year-old girl. The investigation is ongoing while he continues to play and practice with the team.
But he’s not the only one. Thousands of athletes making hundreds of thousands, or even millions, of dollars, committing petty offenses and getting off the hook; or committing major crimes.
When you look at a list of athletes who’ve been convicted of crimes, you’ll realize the overwhelming number of athletes who have as of now been convicted of crimes. There is a wide variety of crimes that range from insider trading to first degree murder, and athletes continue to find themselves in the headlines.
So why would world-famous athletes, living the life that people dream of, commit such crimes? Clinical psychologists and criminal researchers point to extreme narcissism as the clear reason. Athletes that have reached the highest level feel as if they’re on top of the world, and rules don’t apply to them. They’ve also found that the thrill of committing such random crimes is the reason they risk possibly generational wealth for no real reason.
Many athletes aspiring to make it pro frown at the concept of committing a crime at this level.
“It’s just, to me, so stupid”, junior soccer player Bobby Schneider said. “I mean, you’re making more money a year than most people will have in their entire lives, and you chose to waste your gift on such stupid things. It’s just so dumb”.
The American justice system has historically done a good job punishing convicted athletes, making sure they face the same or worse punishments than the average American, and getting no special privileges. But despite this fact, it seems like every day an athlete we know is trending on X, being accused of another crime. American sports fans hope that their favorite players will get themselves together, act responsibly, and live how they’re paid to live.
