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"We got to chase people down for our money" – Udonis Haslem on biggest adjustment to post-NBA life
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- "We got to chase people down for our money" – Udonis Haslem on biggest adjustment to post-NBA life
From lucrative salaries and around-the-clock treatment to every comfort they could need, NBA players live like kings. However, many don't realize how good they had it until they're no longer playing in the big leagues, something Udonis Haslem realized after he retired.
Money consistently came in
Haslem earned roughly $69,032,284 in his 20-year NBA career spent entirely with the Miami Heat. But more than the amount, he said he appreciated the consistency of his salary's arrival in his bank account.
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Recently asked what he had difficulty adjusting to now that he's no longer playing in the NBA, he said it's that: now having to chase his money instead of waiting for it to come to him.
"When I was with the Miami Heat, I knew if on the first and the 15th — I knew it was coming," Haslem shared . "Now we on this side. We got to chase people down for our money."
"That's why I got my business manager right here. We got to chase people down for our money. We'll knock on your door now," he added.
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What Haslem enjoys today
And when asked what he enjoys more now, the former Florida Gator said with a grin that he has more friends now.
"I'll tell you, when I played, I wasn't trying to be liked. I was not trying to be liked. It was one thing you knew, that Udonis was not talking to somebody from the other team," Haslem said. "He was not. And it was nothing. It was guys that I grew up with. Marquis Daniels is my boy. We grew up together, and we played against each other in high school and in college."
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"And when I got to the NBA and he was with the Celtics and I was with the Heat, and we played against each other in the playoffs, I did not speak to Marquis. And I love Marquis, and it was the same thing with Keyon Dooling," he continued.
During his playing years, Haslem was considered a tough guy who didn't hesitate to do whatever it took to help the Heat win and protect his teammates. He had no compunction about laying somebody out if they so much as gave anybody with a Heat jersey on a bad look.
Haslem enjoys a bigger circle
Haslem wasn't exactly known for being friendly with opponents. But now that he's retired, he has dialed his intensity down and shown people more of his personality.
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"I think on this side now, people get to know me and they see my full personality, and, um, I got a little more friends than I used to. My circle's a little bit bigger," he shared. "There was so much more out here for me, and, um, now I'm getting a chance to experience it and see it."
Haslem has spent two decades of his life committed to winning and upholding the standards of Heat basketball. Now, he's enjoying other things that he's missed out on all those years. Well, except for the financial aspect of it.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Oct 31, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
