The Los Angeles Lakers forward is the athlete with the highest income in the NBA thanks to his large salary, but also to his entrepreneurial side that allowed him to increase his wealth due to his investments outside of basketball

Aย LeBron Jamesย is nicknamed theย Kingย not only for his talent inside the basketball court, but also for its ability to make money.ย For the eighth consecutive year, the star who defends the colors of the Los Angeles Lakersย leads the ranking of NBA players with the best payments when taking into account the salaries he receives from the franchise and everything he generates off the courtย .ย In addition, he is ranked fifth among the highest paid athletes on the planet behindย Conor McGregorย ,ย Lionel Messiย ,ย Cristiano Ronaldoย andย Dak Prescottย .

According to a report byย Forbesย magazineย , with his salary of 41.2 million dollars for the upcoming 2021-22 season and an estimated 70 million from his extra-sports business, the 36-year-old forwardย is set to pocket 111.2 million in a single year.ย , demolishing the NBA’s earnings record of 96.5 million it set during the 12 months ending in May.

James already reached a financial milestone this year: he surpassed $ 1 billion in professional earnings before taxes and agent fees, bringing his net worth to approximately $ 850 million.ย He continued his march toward billionaire status this week when his media and entertainment business,ย SpringHill Companyย ,ย announced the sale of a minority stake at a valuation of about $ 725 millionย .

The Los Angeles-based company does everything from producing sports movies and documentaries likeย Space Jam: A New Legacyย ,ย What’s My Name: Muhammad Ali,ย and even doing marketing work for artists likeย JP Morganย .ย LeBron is not expected to pocket a lot of cash from the deal, instead reinvesting most of the profits into the business, a source close to the business confirmed toย Forbesย .

The Golden State Warriors’ย Stephen Curryย ranks second with $ 92.8 million, which would have been a record for an NBA player just a year and a half ago if James weren’t on the road.ย Kevin Durantย of the Brooklyn Nets ($ 87.9 million),ย Giannis Antetokounmpoย of the Milwaukee Bucks ($ 80.3 million) – who had a strong boost after winning last season – andย Russell Westbrookย of the Lakers ($ 74.2 million) complete the top five.

The complete list:

โ€ข LeBron Jamesย (Los Angeles Lakers): 41.2 million salary + 70 million on the outside = 111.2 million

โ€ข Stephen Curryย (Golden State Warriors): 45.8 million salary + 47 million out = 92.8 million

โ€ข Kevin Durantย (Brooklyn Nets):ย 40.9 million salary + 47 million outside = 87.9 million

โ€ข Giannis Antetokounmpoย (Milwaukee Bucks):ย 39.3 million salary + 41 million outside = 80.3 million

โ€ข Russell Westbrookย (Los Angeles Lakers):ย 44.2 million salary + 30 million = 74.2 million

โ€ข James Hardenย (Houston Rockets):ย 44.3 million salary + 18 million out = 62.3 million

โ€ข Damian Lillardย (Portland Trail Blazers):ย 39.3 million salary + 17 million on the outside = 56.3 million

โ€ข Klay Thompsonย (Golden State Warriors):ย 38 million salary + 16 million out = 54 million

โ€ข Paul Georgeย (Los Angeles Clippers):ย 39.3 million salary + 8.5 million outside = 47.8 million

โ€ข Jimmy Butlerย (Miami Heat): 36 million salary + 11 million outside = 47 million

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