Just like European professional football, American NBA players earn more money on the court and off-court endorsement income than ever before, and the gap with other role players is getting bigger and bigger. Just like last season, 9 of the 17-man roster at the end of the season were almost beginning, and the season is still in the free agent market, including Dwight Howard, Warcraft, whose annual salary was more than 30 million US dollars, and Melon Cameron Anthony. However, many of the team's annual income of top stars have become a small part, and more income depends on contract endorsement and side jobs.
In the past, when Forbes counted the world's highest-paid professional athletes, the first and second place were usually European football's C Ronaldo and Messi and positions interchangeably. However, in the statistics in the recent season, the NBA's basketball emperor James officially replaced them as the highest-paid professional players. Even the current annual income of these two is still lower than the recent team transfer storm that caused a sensation. Moreover, James is not only the highest-paid professional athlete in the world, but also the highest annual income in basketball history, with an amount exceeding $120 million. Although this is still lower than the nearly 150 million level of Ronaldo or Messi, it should be difficult for people like James to make money in the NBA.
1. James
On-court revenue: 44.5 million; off-court: 80 million
James is also a rare athlete in the NBA who has earned more than US$100 million in annual revenue many times. What's more special is that the amount of the team contract he set in the past has now been replaced by digital back-to-earth, but he has generated more revenue off-court. In addition to the Nike's lifetime US$1 billion contract, his entertainment production company is still being promoted. His entertainment production company is becoming increasingly successful (participated in the production of Netflix's popular "Must Scout" this year), and his investment in multiple professional teams now representing that he is very likely to have a higher income after retirement like McCor and Jordan.
2. Curry
On-game income: 48.1 million; off-game: 47 million
Curry, who survived three years of hard work to maintain the lifeline of the Golden State Warriors, got the record-breaking contract renewal amount and became the player with the highest income on the field, deserved it. According to Forbes, in addition to brand endorsement, his revenue also has an entertainment production company. He is currently cooperating with Neflix to produce a "I Have a Superpower". In addition, Under Amour's sneaker endorsement is of course a lot of benefits. In particular, Forbes' statistics do not include the lifetime 1 billion US dollars contract he just signed with the brand. That is to say, his annual income is 95.1 million US dollars, but according to the new contract, his annual income is likely to be comparable to James' 120 million level soon.
3. Durant
On-court income: 43 million; off-court: 45 million
34-year-old Durant is still one of the few NBAs who can dominate the team's victory or defeat, and his annual salary with Brooklyn Nets is 43 million, which is one of the reasons why he shouted "sell me" this year but did not have the team really capable of absorbing him, although most teams blamed him for Nets 's draft pick in the trade. However, Durant is also another superstar with off-court income higher than the team's annual salary. However, his off-court revenue may still be underestimated this year because he is the NBA's most passionate player in investing and establishing a cryptocurrency economy, including trading platforms such as Coinbase and Robinhood. The second half of the year is the time of the cryptocurrency crash. Fortunately, he has more endorsement revenue, and he also owns a sports media organization called Boardroom. It is expected that this wave of collapse will come to an end with the US Federal Reserve's interest rate hike crisis, and he will also be promoted to an athlete with an annual income of more than 100 million US dollars.
4. Giannis Antetokounmpo
On-court income: 42.5 million; off-court: 44 million
Antetokounmpo is the youngest player on this list. He became the top five NBA stars at the age of 27. In fact, his team's salary will be as high as 52 million US dollars starting the next season, which will only be a little less than Nuggets 's Nikola Jokic .As for his off-court contract, Nike alone pays him 10 million in sneaker contract every year, and Breitling watches cost about 5 million US dollars. In addition, he has also developed his IP and entertainment company like other players. Recently, he has cooperated with Disney to create a TV series inspired by his life, and his total income next year is likely to exceed 100 million. Drama and completed some quite prolific deals, including a collaboration with luxury watch brand Breitling , which brought his total revenue to 86.5 million.
5. Westbrook
On-game income: 47.1 million; off-game: 35 million
It is hard to imagine that with his sky-high salary, it may start from the Lakers' bench in the new season. It's so crazy. Westbrook 's total revenue this year is as high as US$82.1 million. In addition, although his clothes may be the most fashionable in the NBA, his side job is very down-to-earth, because he is his main investment in car dealers, and there are more than 10 dealerships in , California, alone, and he also has a media entertainment company, RW Digital.
6. Clay Thompson
On-game income: 40.6 million; off-game: 20 million
Another member of the Golden State Warriors was on the list, with a total annual income of 60.6 million. In addition to sponsorship, he is also one of the founders of the Just Live series among the famous sports nutrition and injury prevention health foods CBD brands in the United States. In addition, his interest is to use electric power, so a small part of his income comes from investing in e-sports teams and independent game developers.
7. Damian Lillard
On-court revenue: 42.5 million; off-court: 18 million
This 32-year-old star made no achievements due to injury last season, but Trail Blazers still gave him a five-year contract this season. His off-court income mainly comes from the sneaker contract of adidash, which is the brand's highest amount in NAB player sponsorship. In addition, he also has some contracts of about one million yuan with Spotiy, JBL and Panini player cards. By the way, he also founded a professional sports sole research and development company.
8. Harden
On-the-game income: 33 million; off-the-game: 20 million
Big bearded Harden's annual income is US$53 million, but he and Philadelphia 76ers are considered a salary cut and renewal, but at least there is a basic guarantee. In addition, his out-of-the-game income, in addition to the 13-year 250 million US dollars sneaker contract signed by adidas, will last until 2028, and then he also took on more than ten brand advertising contracts of about hundreds of thousands of dollars each casually. However, the most potential in the future is that the Gran Diamante tequila brand he co-created with his friends has begun to make profits, and he is also a wine collector.
9. Paul George
On-court income: 42.5 million; off-court: 8.5 million
32-year-old Los Angeles Clippers superstar is the most conservative in investing among NBA big-name stars. Although his salary has always been among the top 10 in the league, because his star charm has always been considered a back-end class. Therefore, although he has cooperative relationships with Nike and many brands, the non-industry income earned is always limited compared to previous stars.
10. Jimmy Butler
On-game income: 37.7 million; off-game: 12 million
Miami Heat's squad ranked 10th in the long-term income. Although his new contract with Heat will increase by millions year by year, his star charm or investment conservatism is almost the same as Paul George. What's more, he is definitely the NBA's player who knows best about fine coffee. The Big face Coffee chain he founded currently has an annual turnover of about 2.5 million US dollars, and he still has to endure it.
