Vin Baker's name may not elicit many reactions from today's hoop fans, but there was a time when he stood on top of the basketball world. After three All-Star seasons with the Milwaukee Bucks , the team that selected him eighth overall in the 1993 NBA Draft, the versatile 6'11" big man was traded to the Seattle SuperSonics.
While many feared the Sonics lost that deal, especially since they traded away franchise cornerstone and fan favorite Shawn Kemp for Baker, he soon proved the naysayers wrong by leading the team to the Pacific Division title and the second-best record in the Western Conference.
He averaged 19.2 points on 54.2 percent shooting, 8.0 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.0 blocks per game to earn All-Star and All-NBA team berths. He also finished eighth in the MVP race, establishing himself as one of the league's best players at the time.
Unfortunately for Baker, he couldn't sustain that level of production, especially after he considered his success as a license to do whatever he wanted off the court.
It was safe to say that at that point in his career, he was "the man." He had prestige (he was handpicked by the GOAT, Michael Jordan, to be one of a select few players to represent the Jordan Brand) and wealth (he signed a seven-year, $86 million contract in 1999). He was also named to the squad that represented the United States at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, where the team eventually won a gold medal.
However, instead of cherishing all these accolades and using those to propel him to new heights, he let these go to his head. He rested on his laurels and got complacent, ultimately paying the ultimate price.
"I'd never felt so important and invincible in the sport of basketball in my life. So along with that, my first thought was, I guess the next progression is I can party and hang out like I want to," Baker admitted to the Los Angeles Times.
"It's the spoils. I'm an All-Star now in another conference on the best team in basketball. And this is during the Jordan era," he added.
Instead of sticking to the process that allowed him to become a premier player in the league, Baker let off the gas pedal.
"It was like, I made it. Along with that came the celebration. And I celebrated and celebrated and celebrated almost every day," Baker disclosed.
Celebrations, of course, included booze. A lot of it. Before long, Vin had become an alcoholic who did weed, got addicted to anxiety pills, and drank alcoholic drinks instead of Gatorade. It was a toxic combination that eventually stripped him of everything he had worked so hard for.
His weight ballooned to 300 pounds, and by the time he was sent packing to Boston , his game had fallen off a cliff. He averaged just 7.7 points as a Celtic. After brief stints with the New York Knicks , Houston Rockets , and Los Angeles Clippers , he played his last NBA game on April 19, 2006.
Fortunately for Baker, his story didn't end on a tragic note, as many who had gone down the same path as he had. Instead, he sobered up and has served as an assistant coach of the Milwaukee Bucks since 2018.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Jun 1, 2026, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
