While basketball star Charles Barkley is not averse to negative publicity there is something of a mystery about an alleged $400,000 debt he owes to the Wynn Las Vegas casino. The debt apparently goes back to October 2007 when he took delivery of four $100,000 chips during a night of heavy gambling.
Despite repeated attempts by the casino to guarantee repayment the debt still seems to be outstanding and has now been passed to the courts. However, Barkley recently announced on live TV that he had repaid the debt and had stopped gambling before it became a major problem for him. Strangely, the casino and court officials claim that there has been no contact from Charles Barkley and the debt is still outstanding.
As well as bringing a well known sports star into the gambling debate it also highlights the problem which is hitting many of America’s highest paid sports stars. More and more stars are encountering addiction problems of some sort when their star starts to fade and the public attention leaves them. Many of these stars have been household names for many years and once the public adulation starts to fall it can be difficult for them to cope with ‘normal life’.
While basketball star Charles Barkley is not averse to negative publicity there is something of a mystery about an alleged $400,000 debt he owes to the Wynn Las Vegas casino. The debt apparently goes back to October 2007 when he took delivery of four $100,000 chips during a night of heavy gambling.