Hall of Famer Mitch Richmond: ‘People Don’t Understand How Chris Paul, Lebron James, Dwyane Wade Did a Lot for the Retired Players’

The series of injury woes that have we witnessed the past season, along with this one, is a testament to the fact how important the health of NBA players is, especially when they retire. As long as a player is in the league, they have a sense of motivation to keep themselves fit. However, that’s not the case with former NBA players. And when they’re in need, health care isn’t the cheapest thing in the world, actually far from it. But thanks to LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul, and some other NBA stars, free health care came into being for retired players. However, it’s something that hasn’t been given much credit these past few years, until now.

LeBron James and other NBA superstars making a real difference

Back in 2015, the NBA fraternity was shaken after news about prominent retired NBA players, Darryl Dawkins and Moses Malone’s death reached the headlines. These sudden heart attacks made the league realize how important it is to take care of those who kept fans entertained for years and contributed to what the league is now.

So, the NBA Players Association, along with their commissioner, Adam Silver, decided to take measures towards improving this situation in 2016. Along with Michael Jordan, a lot of the other most influential players like Bron, Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, and many more, came together for this cause. So, a retired NBA player himself, Mitch Richmond, praised their efforts in his recent interview.

He said, “The Players Association changed a little bit of things. And guys like LeBron, Wade, and Chris Paul… People don’t understand how Chris Paul, LeBron, D-Wade, and all those guys did a lot for the retired players. They signed a deal years ago, where we all got free health care. If it weren’t for LeBron and all these people, we wouldn’t have had that free health care.”

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What was the situation like before this change came into place?

Before this, once a player retired, he was given a pension. But they were responsible for their own health care. The mission was to keep the game going and ensure players remain worry-free about what the future holds.

And sacrificing their own money, to cater to somebody else’s well-being is the biggest gesture that there could be. Thus, the NBA became the first professional sports league that gave its retired players such brilliant medical benefits in the retirement package. It was certainly an incredible milestone in the league’s history and it’s these superstars’ selfless nature because of which it was made possible.

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