LeBron James is now the NBA’s first billionaire athlete, Sportico reported.“James is the first player in a U.S. team sport to hit the three-comma club,” Sportico’s Kurt Badenhausen reported. According to the outlet, the Lakers star has accumulated $330 million in playing salary and $700 million from off-court endorsements and business deals.
Not only is LeBron the first active NBA player to become a billionaire, but he’s also the first player in a United States team sport to reach that milestone. This puts him in conversation with Tiger Woods, Floyd Mayweather, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, and Roger Federer as active athletes to have become billionaires. And it won’t be long before another NBA star crosses this threshold. Kevin Durant—who is currently at $580 million in career earnings—is expected to earn $1 billion during his playing career thanks to his 10 year deal with Nike and impressive investments through his Thirty-Five Ventures.
LeBron 36, current endorsement partners include AT&T, Beats, Blaze Pizza, GMC, Nike, PepsiCo, Rimowa, and Walmart, which increases the star’s annual earnings by $100 million. The latest addition to his portfolio is Epic Games, where Fortnite players will have access to a pair of James-themed outfits or “skins.”James is now the first NBA player in history to reach the billionaire mark while still playing in the league. Michael Jordan was on track to seseven figuresuring his career but was unable to before he retired. His total earnings, however, are over $2 billion.
Author: Andrew Collins
andrewc@gmail.com
London, UK
