Charles Barkley Feels The Pinch

05.14.2008 | 5:45 pm | News, casinos, gambling

He may be best known for his loud mouth views, he may be a hero to many on the small screen but it seems as though trash-talking basketball player / television pundit Charles Barkley has missed the basket with claims he is $400,000 in debt. Billionaire casino owner Stephen Wynn’s Las Vegas casino has given Barkley the last call on the alleged $400,000 debt. So what next?

It seems that loud mouth Charles Barkley failed to repay a loan of four $100,000 chips which he is alleged to have taken out at the casino on October 18th and 19th of last year. Despite repeated requests for the money to be repaid it seems as though these have fallen on deaf ears with possible court and jail pending for the big name basketball star. There is speculation that there may be a deep rooted problem for Charles Barkley, something which he has not been too keen to talk about until now.

After being asked whether he has a gambling problem it was alleged that he claimed he had a gambling problem but he could afford it – despite admitting that he has gambled away in the region of $10 million since he hit the big time!

Charles Barkley is not the first all American superstar to fall foul of the casinos with more and more big names coming forward to admit they have a problem. When you have $10 million in the bank and you fancy a flutter there is no problem, however if you have a long losing streak trying to catch your tail it can be a different matter.

To the average man and woman on the street, $10 million is dream money but when you are a sports superstar it can often be small change. Sports stars and ex-sports stars today are making massive money from their clubs and from the media but too many seem to be looking for the next kick, the next bit of excitement, the next roll of the dice…….