Bitcoin has taken quite the dive in the last few months, falling from a record high of more than $66,000 in October down to around $21,000 today. The sharp decline for the world’s most popular cryptocurrency is representative of the larger crypto market, which is in a bit of a dry spell as a whole.
The news is tough to hear for those who aren’t as bullish on crypto as they might have once been, especially if they didn’t get out sooner. Among the ranks could be a few athletes who accepted some or all of their salary in crypto over the last year or so.
But while this graphic that surfaced on Twitter about stars who suffered the biggest losses made for a good joke (the caption, not the losses), it’s not completely accurate.
I don’t want to hear another word about Trevor Lawrence’s decision-making compared to Tua when stuff like this is out there (via Coinjournal[dot]net). pic.twitter.com/VKJ9Ycyy6F
— David Furones (@DavidFurones_) June 21, 2022
The big name that jumps right off the page is Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence, who partnered with Blockfolio last April to have his entire $24 million rookie signing bonus paid in crypto. According to the chart, that $24 million would only be worth about $9 million today. But that doesn’t necessarily mean Lawrence lost $15 million.
What we don’t know is if and when Lawrence, or any of the other athletes’ losses were realized. Bitcoin was at about $54,000 when Lawrence’s deal with Blockfolio was announced last April. So it’s possible he actually made a profit if he pulled out at or near the October peak. Russell Okung may have even been one of the league’s highest paid players at one point thanks to receiving half his 2020 salary in Bitcoin.
Of course, for those who are still invested, it’s possible their losses could reach even more than what’s listed above. But as people who apparently believed in crypto enough to put millions into it, they’d tell you the market is going to turn and they’ll still potentially make money or break even. I wouldn’t bet on it, but hey, that’s just me.
The biggest thing to take away from the list is that none of the athletes were bullish enough to put their entire salary into crypto. Odell Beckham Jr. was the only one who did, but his $750,000 deal with the Rams was just a fraction of what he was paid by the Browns in the same year. And Sean Culkin would’ve put his entire salary into crypto, but he was cut last spring before he could even get the chance — and then retired. It was the ultimate all-in move. For the vast majority of the others, the salary conversion was simply another investment – a gamble. One that may or may not have paid off, but one they ultimately could afford to make.
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