Who’s the Highest Paid NBA Player of All Time?

Michael Jordan is the highest paid NBA player of all time. He earned a total of $1.85 billion over his career.

Michael Jordan

Michael Jordan is a retired American professional basketball player who is widely considered to be the greatest basketball player of all time. He was one of the most effectively marketed athletes of his generation and was considered instrumental in popularizing the NBA around the world in the 1980s and 1990s. Jordan played 15 seasons in the NBA, winning six championships with the Chicago Bulls. He also won the Most Valuable Player Award five times, was an All-Star 14 times, and was named the Defensive Player of the Year once.

His Airness

By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time. As a six-time NBA champion, a five-time NBA Most Valuable Player, a 14-time NBA All-Star, and a two-time Olympic gold medalist, Jordan’s individual and team accomplishments speak for themselves. In addition, he was named the Defensive Player of the Year once, and he earned ten NBA All-Defensive First Team honors.

Off the court, Jordan has become successful in multiple business ventures, most notably with his brand of sportswear and sneakers, Jordan Brand. He is also a part-owner of the Charlotte Hornets.

Jordan’s individual accolades and accomplishments include:
-6x NBA champion (1991-1993, 1996-1998)
-6x NBA Finals MVP (1991-1993, 1996-1998)
-5x NBA Most Valuable Player (1988, 1991, 1992, 1996, 1998)
-14x NBA All-Star (1985-1993, 1996-1998)
3x All Star MVP
10x scoring champion
2× Olympic gold medalist (1984, 1992)

The G.O.A.T

Michael Jeffrey Jordan (born February 17, 1963), also known by his initials MJ, is an American former professional basketball player who is the principal owner and chairman of the Charlotte Hornets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played 15 seasons in the NBA, winning six championships with the Chicago Bulls. His biography on the official NBA website states: “By acclamation, Michael Jordan is the greatest basketball player of all time.” He was one of the most effectively marketed athletes of his generation and was considered instrumental in popularizing the NBA around the world in the 1980s and 1990s.

Jordan played three seasons for coach Dean Smith at the University of North Carolina. As a freshman, he was a member of the Tar Heels’ national championship team in 1982. Jordan joined the Bulls in 1984 as the third overall draft pick. He quickly emerged as a league star and entertained crowds with his prolific scoring. His leaping ability, demonstrated by performing slam dunks from free throw line in Slam Dunk Contests, earned him nicknames such as “Air Jordan” and “His Airness”. He also gained a reputation for being one of the best defensive players in basketball. In 1991, he won his first NBA Championship with the Bulls, and followed that achievement with titles in 1992 and 1993, securing a “three-peat”. Although Jordan abruptly retired from basketball before the beginning of especially after winning three consecutive championships between 1996 to 1998. He returned to play for another two years between 2001 to 2003 as a member of Washington Wizards.

Jordan’s individual accolades and accomplishments include six NBA Finals Most Valuable Player (MVP) Awards, ten scoring titles (both all-time records), five MVP Awards, ten All-NBA First Team selections, nine All-Defensive First Team honors, fourteen NBA All-Star Game selections (another all-time record), three All-Star Game MVP Awards, three steals titles, six NBA Finals appearances (another all-time record), and two Olympic gold medals. Jordan also holds several all-time records including highest career regular season scoring average (30.12 points per game) and highest career playoff scoring average (33.45 points per game). In 1999 he was named Greatest North American Athlete of 20th Century by ESPN

Kobe Bryant

Kobe Bryant is an American professional basketball player who played his entire 20-year career in the National Basketball Association (NBA) with the Los Angeles Lakers. He is widely considered one of the greatest players in NBA history. He is also the highest-paid player in NBA history, with salaries totaling $323 million over his 20-year career.

The Black Mamba

Kobe Bean Bryant (/ˈkoʊbi/ KOH-bee; born August 23, 1978) is an American former professional basketball player. He played his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He entered the NBA directly from high school and won five NBA championships with the Lakers. Bryant is an 18-time All-Star, 15-time member of the All-NBA Team, and 12-time member of the All-Defensive team. He led the NBA in scoring during two seasons and ranks third on both the league’s all-time regular season scoring and all-time postseason scoring lists. He holds the NBA record for the most seasons playing with one franchise for an entire career. At 34 years and 104 days of age, Bryant became the youngest player in league history to reach 30,000 career points. He became one of seven players in NBA history to achieve that feat.[2][3]

Bryant is also notable for being one of only two players in NBA history (the other being Wilt Chamberlain) to score at least 600 points in a single season while averaging less than 30 minutes per game (in 2005–06).[4] Since his retirement in 2016, he has been ranked as one of the top ten players in NBA history.[5][6][7][8]

Mr. 81

On November 16, 2005, Kobe Bryant made NBA history by scoring 81 points in a game against the Toronto Raptors. This was not only the second highest single-game point total in NBA history (Wilt Chamberlain holds the record with 100 points), but it was also the highest point total ever scored by a player in a regulation game. And, to add to the legend of Kobe Bryant, he accomplished this feat while suffering from flu-like symptoms.

LeBron James

LeBron James is currently the highest paid NBA player of all time. He signed a four-year contract with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2018, which is worth $153 million. In 2019, he earned a base salary of $37.4 million, which is the highest in NBA history. LeBron’s career earnings are currently over $500 million. He is also one of the most endorsement-friendly athletes in the world, which has helped him rake in even more money.

The King

LeBron James is often referred to as “The King” because of his legions of fans, incredible skills on the basketball court, and for his achievements as one of the highest-paid NBA players of all time.

Born on December 30, 1984, in Akron, Ohio, LeBron James started playing organized basketball when he was just a young boy. Since then, he has gone on to achieve numerous personal and professional accomplishments, including being named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) four times. He has also led his teams to nine NBA Finals appearances, winning three championships.

In addition to his impressive playing career, LeBron James has also amassed a fortune through various business ventures and endorsement deals. In 2018, Forbes magazine estimated James’ net worth to be $450 million. This made him the highest-paid player in the NBA at that time and also made him one of the richest athletes in the world.

With all of his accomplishments on and off the court, it’s no wonder LeBron James is considered one of the most successful athletes of all time.

The Chosen One

LeBron James was born December 30, 1984, in Akron, Ohio. When LeBron was just a baby, his mother Gloria moved them into the house of Frank Walker, a local youth football coach who introduced LeBron to organized sports. Gloria had some struggles raising LeBron on her own and was glad to have Frank’s help. From an early age, it was clear that LeBron had great natural abilities in athletics.

By the time he was nine years old, LeBron was already on a local youth basketball team. He quickly became one of the best players on the team and began to draw attention from bigger programs. When he was just eleven years old, he was featured in a Sports Illustrated article about up-and-coming young athletes. The article called him “The Chosen One”, which would end up being James’ nickname throughout his career.

As a teenager, LeBron continued to excel at basketball and skipped his senior year of high school to enter the NBA draft. He was drafted by the Cleveland Cavaliers with the first overall pick in 2003. After some early struggles, James quickly became one of the best players in the league and helped lead the Cavaliers to their first ever NBA Finals appearance in 2007.

LeBron would go on to win two NBA championships with the Miami Heat before returning to Cleveland in 2014. He then led the Cavaliers to an improbable comeback victory over the Golden State Warriors in the 2016 NBA Finals, giving Cleveland its first ever major sports championship in 52 years. James is widely considered one of the greatest basketball players of all time and has won numerous MVP awards and All-Star selections throughout his career.

In 2018, LeBron signed a four-year contract with the Los Angeles Lakers worth $154 million. This made him the highest-paid player in NBA history at that time. As of 2020, James continues to play at an elite level and is widely considered one of the best players in the league today.