LeBron "King James" James is only sixth on the list with a cap hit of $41,180,544. 1. Stephen Curry, Golden State Warriors (highest paid NBA player) Back in August of 2021, Curry became the first player in Association history to sign two NBA contracts worth north of $200 million. In doing so, the four-time champion set the bar in a big way. MORE: Who has the most 50-point games in NBA history? The highest amount that can be paid is $19,500 and the NBA matches 140% of it. Rewarded for his consistent scoring with a five-year, $215 million contract in July 2022, he averaged 22.2 points over the first 15 games in 2022-23. That keeps him atop Forbes ranking of the NBAs highest-paid players for the eighth straight year. Is a Jaylen Brown trade likely this summer? Larry Bird was the first player to earn $5 million or more with a salary of $7,070,000 in the 1991-92 season. Magic Johnson became the first player to earn $10 million or more in the 94-95 season with a salary of $14,660,000. After all, Brown has free agency awaiting him in 2024, if he doesn't ink an extension between now and then. Jimmy Butler averaged a solid 20.9 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 6.1 assists over the first 15 games of the 2022-23 season. Cowboys Miss On Kicker; Sign Gould? Jerry Reveals Plan You may also like: Iconic moments in sports that defined the '70s. Here is the breakdown on the Durant extension:22/23- $44.14M23/24- $47.64M24/25- $51.17M25/26- $54.70MThe first year number is 105% off his $42M salary in 21/22He is allowed to exceed 35% of the max ($41.65M). He is exactly what this team needs, simultaneously scratching itches for defense, shooting, secondary scoring (and distributing) and star power. 76ers vs. Celtics: Start time, where to watch, what's the latest, Heat vs. Knicks: Start time, where to watch, what's the latest, Draymond Green: '[Malik] Monk said we was old', Klay Thompson on matchup against Lakers: 'It's just a dream come true. - 2022-23 Salary: $35,448,672. Jordan Greer is an NBA content producer for The Sporting News. The highest-paid basketball player during the 1946 through 1947 season was technically Tom King, playing guard for the Detroit Falcons.However, Kings $16,500 salary also accounted for his job duties as the business The four-timeMVP will bring in $111.2 million when accounting for all of his financial interests, according to Forbes, putting him ahead of Curry ($92.8 million), Durant ($87.9 million), Giannis Antetokounmpo ($80.3 million) and Westbrook ($74.2 million). - Team: Brooklyn Nets However, his annual salary ranks 16th in the NFL for the 2022-2023 season. You may also like: How many Olympic athletes hail from every state in the US, - Team: Washington Wizards These cookies are necessary for the website to function and cannot be switched off in our systems. Since Trae Young is still only 24 years old, the Hawks have a little time to wait on Williams' development. The Atlanta Hawks paid a small fortune to land Dejounte Murray during the 2022 NBA season. Harden, who has leaned toward equity deals in recent years, took a stake in massage-device maker Therabody in February through his firm 13 Endeavors and joined Saks, the e-commerce offshoot of luxury retailer Saks Fifth Avenue, as an investor and board member in June. Stephen Curry signed a mammoth four-year extension that will take him through the 2025-26 season with Golden State. The docked pay keeps him off the top-ten ranking entirely. - 2022-23 Salary: $47,063,478. - Position: Small forward Golden State Warriors forward (and CBD entrepreneur) Klay Thompson is the seventh-highest-paid NBA star, expected to earn $43.3 million this year. The NBAs salary cap is up to $112.4 million and the luxury-tax threshold to $136.6 million this season, nearly double the levels of a decade ago. highest One thing to know: According to ESPN's Bobby Marks, Horford has only $14.5 million of his $26.5 million salary guaranteed, but it becomes fully guaranteed if he wins the Finals. The highest-paid NBA players by season has recently eclipsed $40 million. Top 10 highest-paid NBA players in 2020-21 - Sportskeeda Fans across the US are craving concerts. Paul George of the LA Clippers starts off this list of the top 10 highest-paid players in the NBA, raking in over $35 million per year through the end of the 2021-22 - Team: Brooklyn Nets the highest paid NBA player If youre more into average annual value over the course of a contract, he also leads the league in that metric at $45.64 million per season. - Position: Shooting guard And when given the chance to publicly commit to the franchise long-term, he didn't exactly go that route. WebBelow are the 23 richest NBA players of all time: 23. For now, its Giannis Antetokounmpo. Jokics new deal is the richest contract in the history of the NBA and only behind Stephen Curry in NBA history when it comes to per-year average. It also includes a $60 million player option for the 2027-28 season. To say that the two-time reigning NBA MVP has earned this would be an understatement. The WNBA may be a league on the rise, but its players pay is low. Brock Williams-Smith/NBAE via Getty Images. Highest-paid NBA Players of 2021-22 - Boardroom With his $41.2 million salary for the upcoming 2021-22 season and an estimated $70 million from his ventures off the court, the Los Angeles Lakers star is set to haul in $111.2 million in a single year, demolishing the NBA earnings record of $96.5 million he established over the 12 months ending in May. Because we respect your right to privacy, you can choose not to allow some types of cookies. Whatever they envisioned for the 2022-23 campaign could not have been this. He signed an extension this past summerthat will kick in at the start of the 2022-23 season and is worth a total of $215 million over four years. One thing to know: James signed a two-year, $97 million extension with the Lakers this week, which will help push his career earnings over the half billion mark. The Los Angeles-based company does everything from producing movies and documentaries (Space Jam: A New Legacy, Whats My Name: Muhammad Ali) to doing marketing work for the likes of J.P. Morgan. At 34, the two-time NBA MVP continues to justify his four-year, $215-million contract, signed in 2021. - Position: Center The 32-year-old recently added Hennessy as a sponsor and is behind eyewear brand Westbrook Frames and clothing label Honor The Gift. After missing the last two seasons because of leg injuries, Klay Thompson is nearing a return to the Golden State Warriors, with three years remaining on a contract he signed in 2019. LeBron James: Current figure is $387.3 million Chris Paul: Current figure is $330.7 million Kevin Durant: Current figure is $306.1 million Russel Westbrook: Current figure is $288 million James Harden: Current figure is $268.8 million. 48. An exception is necessary to sign a player for a contract that would exceed the salary cap threshold of the "soft cap". $40,600,080. - Team: Milwaukee Bucks One thing to know: Conley may not have made many All-Star teams, but he's always been among the steadiest, two-way guards in the NBA and a fit on any team. Atlanta has several intriguing trade candidates (John Collins says hello), but after buying big on Murray, it might be looking to add instead of subtract. The 33-year-old sharpshooter also ties for second, with Kevin Durant, with his off-the-court earnings. The Washington Wizards Russell Westbrook will pocket $58.1 million, with off-court income largely from Nike and his robust car dealership portfolio. - Team: Los Angeles Clippers The No. That trio has to start playing with more collective impact to finish this season or we have to revisit the build. NBA players The 32-year-old also recently partnered with luxury watch brand Vanguart as an ambassador and shareholder. The 31-year-old, coming off a third-team all-NBA campaign and a dominant 2021 postseason, counts Nike, Gatorade and AT&T among his partners and is an investor in home gym company Tonal. When Klay Thompson signed a five-year, $190 million contract in 2019 to stay with the Warriors, they knew his ACL surgery would likely sideline him for a full season but, combined with a later injury, cost him two seasons. George's four-year, $190 million contract extension signed in 2020 has proven to be a bargain as he led the Clippers to their first Western Conference Finals in franchise history in 2021, and his averages of 23.8 points and 6.3 rebounds early in the 2022-23 season show he hasn't lost much of his mojo. Career stats: 19.1 points, 8.1 rebounds, 1.9 assists. Last summer, he became the first player to ever sign a second $200 million deal. Adidas, Gatorade and Modelo are among his brand partners, with Oakley eyewear and Tissot watches two recent additions to the stable. Glancing over at the highest-paid players in the NBA reveals that Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry has the richest annual salary at a little north of $48 million. The luxury tax levelis $136.606 million, and the minimum team salary is $101.173 million. Of course, LeBron James is the leagues highest-paid player, trailed by Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry. A big reason for that is salary inflation: As a top draft pick in 2003, James earned just over $4 million in his rookie season, much less than the $10 million salaries that top picks can earn today. - Team: Dallas Mavericks She often slams the pay disparity with the NBA and advocates for better treatment of players like their counterparts in Asia and Europe. Since Phoenix drafted him in 2015, Booker has improved almost every year, averaging a career-high 26.8 points per game in 2021-22 and holding steady at 26.5 per game in the first 13 games of 2022-23. More important for this season specifically is the return of fans to arenas. It includes a player's option for a third year, which means that for the 2024-25 season James can choose to extend the contract or sign with another team. Yet for all that success, Antetokounmpo is still only 26the only member of this top ten still under 30. https://t.co/toBjpvmhEq. NBA Player Salaries - National Basketball Association - ESPN The league is projecting revenue will return to pre-pandemic levels this season, and the hope is that there will be minimal adjustments to player salaries. - Position: Point guard - Team: Atlanta Hawks The NBA salary cap is the maximum dollar amount each NBA team can spend on its players for the season. The 26-year-old Greek Freak has a Disney biopic in the works. He can become a free agent after this season by declining his $47 million player option for 2022-23. Awards: 5x All-Star, 1x All-NBA, 1x All-Defensive, Career stats: 19.1 points, 4.3 rebounds, 9.1 assists. The Golden State Warriors Stephen Curry takes the runner-up spot with $92.8 million, which would have been a record for an NBA player just a year and half ago. He is due to earn $45.7 million for the 2021-22 season, with his base salary accounting for 52% of his total earnings. Russell Westbrook is playing for his hometown team after an off-season trade to the Los Angeles Lakers. The Heat have $96.3M in total committed to Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo & Kyle Lowry next season. Whether his synergy with LeBron James and Russell Westbrook will turn the season around after the Lakers' dismal 3-10 start remains to be seen. Gobert spent nine years using his 7-foot-1 height to snag rebounds for the Jazz and led the league in 2021-22 with a 14.7-rebound averageand he hasn't missed a beat (or many rebounds) since debuting for the Timberwolves. - 2022-23 Salary: $37,096,500. Stephen Curry isn't just known for cashing out from well beyondthe 3-point line. The 18 highest-paid NBA players of all time 1. After unloading so many assets in the Murray deal (three firsts and a swap), Atlanta could be operating with a limited trade budget. - 2022-23 Salary: $35,448,672. After establishing himself as a staraveraging 19.1 points and 8.1 assists per game as a rookie in 2018-19 and 25 to 30 points and 9 to 10 assists per game in every season sincethe Hawks gave Trae Young a lucrative five-year, $207 million contract extension in 2021. Michael Jordan was the first NBA player to sign a contract worth over $20 million and in fact it exceeded $30 million as well in a season (1996-97) and (1997-98) where he earned $33,140,000; this was a record he had held for 20 years. The Los Angeles Lakers and Milwaukee Bucks are the only teams with three players in the top 25. However, blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Bradley Beal, Washington Wizards: Chris Webber - $80 million Chris Webber in a suit. Awards: 1x MVP, 12x All-Star, 10x All-NBA, Career stats: 27.2 points, 7.1 rebounds, 4.3 assists. One thing to know: Paul, who took less than the maximum last summer to stay with Phoenix, hasn't shown any signs of slowing down, as he led the NBA in assists last year his 17th in the league. $26,500,000. Three franchises will pay their top-earning player less than $200,000 for the upcoming campaign. One thing to know: Griffin is only three years removed from an All-NBA season. To that end, most Stacker stories are freely available to - Position: Power forward Russell Westbrook is Mr. Versatile, as his 194 triple-doubles are the most in the history of the NBA. Kevin Durant is currently one of the five highest-paid basketball players in his league, with a salary of US$42 million annually, per Celebrity Net Worth. Top No NBA player will make more than Stephen Curry in salary this season, and thats before the four-year, $215 million contract extension he signed with the Golden State Warriors in August kicks in. Career stats: 18.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, 9.5 assists. - Position: Shooting guard LeBron James has agreed to a two-year, $97.1 million contract extension with the Los Angeles Lakers, making him the highest-paid player in NBA history, as first (And check out Boardrooms salary roundups for NFL and MLB players, too.). LeBron James has agreed to a two-year, $97.1 million contract extension with the Los Angeles Lakers, making him the highest-paid player in NBA history, as first reported by ESPN. storytelling. https://t.co/i9jlOomG1g. Each year there are ten players selected to one of the two All-NBA Teams. You may opt-out by, keeps him off the top-ten ranking entirely. Another option for teams would be to assign players to a league-assigned minimum salary contract for a maximum of two years. Swinging a deal for O.G. Highest-Paid NBA Players of All Time - Insider Because of injuries and a trade request, he played just 40 games on it. Highest-paid Players in the NBA The Atlanta Hawks paid a small fortune to land Dejounte Murray during the 2022 NBA season. Giannis Antetokounmpo is fresh off a championship run with the Milwaukee Bucks and has two MVP Awards to his namemore than anyone on this list not named LeBron James or Stephen Curry. When you buy products through Boardroom's links, we may earn an affiliate commission. He remains a valuable asset to the Raptors, averaging 24.8 points in the first 16 games of the 2022-23 season. He's been one of the NBA's best guards since. Kyrie Irving, the Brooklyn Nets point guard, has refused to get vaccinated against Covid-19, and that has sidelined the Australian-born superstar. Career stats: 22.5 points, 6.2 rebounds, 2.7 assists. Making double his salary in endorsements, LeBron James is No. With the extension, he will make an estimated $46.7 million for the 2023-24 season. After just four seasons, he is already a two-time NBA All-Star Game starter and helped the Hawks advance in the 2022 playoffs with a stunning 32-point second half in April. He then earned every penny by leading the Bucks to their first championship in 50 years, the 2020-21 NBA Finals MVP title. 6 overall, but he owns the title ofhighest earner in NBA history. The "Greek Freak" was the NBA's MVP and Defensive Player of the Year in 2020, meriting a five-year, $228 million contract extensionthe heftiest in NBA history. A knee injury kept Kawhi Leonard out of most early-season games in 2022-23, but his return is eagerly awaited. He's also a two-time NBA All-Star and a two-time Slam Dunk Contest winner. While the Lakers struggled early in the 2022-23 season, you can't blame LeBron, who led the Lakers in points (24.9) and assists (6.9) through Game 13, justifying his two-year, $97.1 million contract extension. Bottom line: Teach your son to shoot hoops! It also represents a staggering 132% increase from a decade ago. Curry is one of the highest paid basketball players with over $40 million in annual salary. Stephen Curry: Current Figure $254.7 million Last season, emergency adjustments to the NBAs escrow system appeared likely to cut players salaries by 20%, so Forbes reduced the top tens published on-court earnings figures accordingly. NBA's riches reach a bit deeper, though, as the NFL's 25th-highest salary is $24 million and the MLB's is $25 million compared to the NBA's $33.7 million (Jrue Holiday). The star of the 2016 NBA Finals (along with then-Cavs teammate LeBron) began the final year of a four-year, $141 million contract with the Nets in 2022-23. But I will stay where I'm wanted. That's more than 10 points ahead of any of his teammates. Top 10 highest-paid WNBA players in Career stats: 15.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists. A Division of NBC Universal, Lawyer to firefighter, this 36-year-old is turning her side hustle into a career, 'Cheapest guy in the NBA' LeBron James won't pay for Elon Musk's Twitter Blue, NCAA star Angel Reese: Playing at LSU is more lucrative than the WNBA, Jalen Hurts' $255 million contract sets an NFL record, Why Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is 'thrilled' LeBron James broke his NBA scoring record, Ryan Reynolds breaks down his approach to investing: 'My job is storytelling', according to salary-tracking site Spotrac, first active NBA player to reach billionaire status. There are better post defenders and perimeter stoppers, but few players who can execute both roles at such a high level. The 36-year-old signed a two-year, $85 million extension with the Los Angeles Lakers in December, and his collection of off-the-court ventures is unmatched in the NBA, with his Nike deal alone paying him $32 million annually. [5] Finally, the rookie player exception allows any NBA team to sign their first-round draft pick to a contract based upon a scale previously set forth by the NBA. Liz Cambage plays for the Las Vegas Aces and is probably the highest-paid WNBA player of all time. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not then work.