The Atlanta Lenox Mall area in Buckhead is a diverse upscale area filled to the brim with some of Atlanta’s most “moneyed” people of all races, and it is located only a short distance from the Governor’s Mansion of the State of Georgia.

If you are going to panhandle for coins, that would be the  IN-place to do it. But Lenox shoppers, constantly harassed by folks who know where to go looking for extra change, don’t take kindly to it and the mall’s policy is to keep their customers from being hit up by beggars.

So why was Allen Iverson, a one-time NBA “Rookie of the Year” and “All Star MVP who was “big-ballin’ ” not too long ago hanging around Lenox Mall this time last month begging for change?

When security was called on a “guy on the mall premises harassing people for change,” they were surprised to discover it was none other than former MVP Allen Iverson himself. They promptly asked him to leave the property.

Jason Seaworth, who works security at the mall, says it was very difficult for him to ask his childhood hero to leave. “One of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do… . It was very sad to see him in such a bad place. I really hope he gets his life together and somehow returns to prominence,” Seaworth stated.

That may not be too far off if Iverson can keep from going hungry for the next 16 years. He filed for bankruptcy during divorce proceedings in 2012, but still has a $30 million trust with Reebok that he can’t access until he is 55.

The former NBA superstar’s career ended abruptly after a career filled with glamorous indulgences at the rate of more than $200 million, including endorsements.

Iverson blew through his money at an alarming rate on over-priced jewelry, expensive cars, and a pricey mansion that he purchased while in a financial bind. He held the property less than a year before it was foreclosed on. In 2012, a Georgia judge garnished his wages to satisfy a $859,896.46 debt to a jeweler.

Iverson told an Atlanta judge, “I don’t even have money for a cheeseburger,” while turning his pockets inside out.

Iverson is believed to be homeless and roaming around from pillar to post, but is said to have a future ambition to be an “office worker” for the Philadephia 76ers, his former glory team.

Financial Lesson to be Learned: $200 million is not a lot of money. May be more than you have right now, but it is not an “endless pool” and can disappear quickly if care is not taken in your budget and spending habits.

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