Also read: 15 best 401(k) plans in pro sports

Brian Ouellette, co-founder of Pro Athlete Direct, notes that with "substantial money and real estate assets at issue in these cases, athletes need the best representation they can get." 

No doubt. They also clearly need a solid retirement advisor at their side. 

More than a whopping 60 percent of professional athletes are broke within five years of retirement, despite having had average annual incomes of $1.6 million per year during their careers. 

Jordan, Woods and Rodriguez aren't likely to go broke, given their outsized earnings. But considering that most athletes retire by the time they're 30 and spend more than 40 years retired from sports, that's a long time to worry about money issues.

Of course, many go on to other careers, but a lack of planning for retirement when they're literally earning millions a season means that the big money can easily evaporate instead of being there for them when other opportunities narrow. 

Divorce is one of the big reasons athletes find themselves penniless so soon after leaving their sports careers. But, according to a post by Cliff Goldstein of NerdWallet, a lot of athletes also are just clueless about money, spending without restraint, taking really bad financial advice and feeling invulnerable — as if they're not prone to career-ending injuries or other problems.

Ouellette said that athletes "rarely will be able to replicate even 20 percent of the annual income they generate as an athlete moving forward."

It's too easy for them to postpone any kind of retirement planning, he said, because of lack of understanding of money management and of the importance of early saving. In addition, because sports figures' incomes are front-loaded, they make the most at the beginning of their careers — when they are most prone to being taken in by bad financial advisors.

Also read: NFL Players Assoc. expands financial education program

There are retirement plans for athletes — pension plans and even 401(k)s with employer matching funds — but athletes, like the rest of the population, find that it's tough to sock away enough in just those to finance a retirement. Especially when that retirement can last up to half a century. 

Seven of the pro sports leagues have retirement benefits, but they vary widely from sport to sport — and from year to year, with some of the changes being as drastic as anything you might see in the corporate marketplace.

And even if players contribute to their plans, and even if players' careers last long enough to collect full benefits, the plans are prone to problems. In 2010, for example, retired NFL players got a shock when they were sent Notices of Endangered Status because their plan's funding had dropped below 80 percent.

Few clients can bring as much fame and fortune to the table as do professional athletes. But financial advisors – including those who focus on retirement – who hope to serve athletes should know that these figures face "myriad complex and unique issues that require special expertise to unravel."

That was the warning issued in an article several years ago by Joseph Geier and Melissa Jordan, the president and client relationship manager, respectively, of Geier Financial Group, a wealth management firm in Marriottsville, Md. Geier serves pro athletes and other high-net-worth individuals.  

Among the points made in the article: Advisors will find that "planning for an athlete's retirement will entail helping him plan for a second career."

"Advisors," the two wrote, "must understand salary structure, contract and bonus structures and what the athlete does and does not get reimbursed for by the team. They must also know the financial repercussions when an athlete is injured. They need to know, for example, how long the athlete is expected to be sidelined and if he will travel with his team during the recovery period-factors that must be considered when preparing tax returns.

"Knowing the client's general data – risk tolerance, net worth and cash flow – is just the tip of the iceberg," the pair said. "Advisors need to know their clients' life goals, what their dreams and aspirations are after their playing days are over, and have a solid relationship with their families." 

In other words, it takes a lot of work before any advisor can expect to make a touchdown or hit a home run.