Report: Tim Duncan claims he lost $20 million to financial advisor

Tim Duncan claims he lost more than $20 million to a dishonest financial advisor, according to a report in Bloomberg Business.

The bright side for the San Antonio superstar is he has made 11 times that amount during his NBA career. So any retirement plans he may -- or may not -- have this off-season will not be influenced by the alleged loss of what most of us would consider an incredible amount of cash.

“Luckily I had a long career and made good money,” said Duncan, who has been paid about $220 million over his career, including about $10 million this past season, said in a telephone interview. “This is a big chunk, but it’s not going to change my life in any way. It’s not going to make any decisions for me.”

The 15-time All Star is suing his former financial advisor, Charles Banks, for allegedly pushing him into investments that were profitable for Banks but lost money for Duncan.

The lawsuit, filed in January, seeks more than $1 million in damages. It alleges that Banks withheld Duncan’s return on a loan and forged Duncan’s signature on at least two documents.

Duncan said he met Banks during his rookie season in 1998 and ended up investing millions of dollars in businesses and products that Banks owned or had financial stakes in, according to the lawsuit. Duncan’s alleged losses are said to have occurred from 2005-13.

Banks has asserted that Duncan’s losses, which are said to have occurred from 2005-13, were due to either a misunderstanding or the player’s impatience.

“I trusted someone to do a job that I hired them to do and they misused my trust and went astray and started using my money,” Duncan told Bloomberg in a phone interview. “I want people to understand that the statements he made are absolutely incorrect, that he’s just trying to make himself look good and save his own image when there’s nothing there to save.”

Antroy Arreola, an attorney for Banks, told Bloomberg that “Mr. Banks found the legal action surprising because Mr. Duncan has no claim against Mr. Banks.”

Arreola added: “Mr. Duncan’s investments as a whole have performed well. We are confident that when all the facts are heard, it will be clear that the claims presented lack foundation.’’

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