LeBron James Net Worth: The Inside Scoop
When it comes to occupations in different fields, there aren’t many that pay better than being a professional athlete at the highest level of your respective sport. This may get you wondering how much megastars like LeBron James are worth.
LeBron James’ net worth is estimated to be over $1 billion dollars. The NBA legend has made over $500 million from his NBA contracts. He also rakes in hundreds of millions from his endorsement deals, business ventures, and social media presence.
Read on to learn more about this illustrious athlete’s wealth and how much he’s currently worth. We’ll also take a quick look at his journey and how he inevitably became one of the greatest and fiercest basketball players of all time.
Let’s get started.
What Is LeBron James’ Net Worth?
LeBron James is one of the richest athletes in history. The legendary NBA player has a net worth of over $1.2 billion, making him one of only three athletes to reach the billion-dollar plateau. The other two are Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods.
At this time, James is under a two-year, $97-million contract with the Los Angeles Lakers. It’s where he’s currently getting paid a salary of around $44.5 million for the 2022-23 season.
How Does LeBron James Make His Money?
Sure, LeBron James has signed plenty of colossal contracts throughout his career. However, you don’t get to the level of wealth he’s reached without also having other highly lucrative streams of income.
Let’s dive into the details of how the 18-time All-Star managed to join the highly exclusive billionaires’ club.
NBA Salary
In 2020, LeBron James officially became the player with the highest total career earnings in the history of the NBA. This strong-willed Hall of Famer has made $529 million over his illustrious career and it doesn’t look like he’s stopping any time soon!
As the first overall pick in the 2003 NBA Draft, James started off his career by signing a rookie contract worth $18.8 million over four years.
It didn’t take long for James to prove that he was worth a much more lucrative contract than this. In turn, the Cleveland Cavaliers’ decision to reward him with a four-year, $60 million contract in 2007 was a no-brainer.
Here’s a complete rundown of LeBron’s contracts throughout his 20-year career that’s still going strong:
| Year | Team | Duration | Contract |
| 2003 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 4 Years | $18.8 million |
| 2007 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 4 Years | $60 million |
| 2010 | Miami Heat | 6 Years | $110 million |
| 2014 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 2 Years | $42 million |
| 2015 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 2 Years | $46 million |
| 2016 | Cleveland Cavaliers | 3 Years | $99.8 million |
| 2018 | Los Angeles Lakers | 4 Years | $154 million |
| 2022 | Los Angeles Lakers | 2 Years | $97 million |
Endorsement Deals
When you turn on your TV, the chances that you won’t run into LeBron James in one commercial or another are slim to none. The NBA superstar is seemingly everywhere, having endorsement deals with a plethora of brands.
James’ most lucrative endorsement deal is with Nike. His relationship with the sports apparel giant started before he even set foot on an NBA court.
As soon as James announced that he would be forgoing college and jumping straight into the NBA out of high school, every shoe brand out there was clamoring to sign him. After a fierce battle with Adidas, Nike was able to sign James to a seven-year $87 million deal.
Since then, James has become one of the brand’s most prominent ambassadors around the globe. In 2015, the 18-time NBA All-Star signed a lifetime deal with Nike worth over $1 billion.
LeBron also signed a giant $100 million deal with Samsung in 2012 to endorse their products and appear in their commercials.
He also has endorsement deals with 2K Sports, KIA, and Walmart. His long-time partnership with Beats By Dre came to an end when Apple bought the company in 2014.
Social Media
Another huge source of income for James is his social media presence. The NBA icon has 27 million and 139 million followers on Facebook and Instagram respectively. This incredibly large following means that James earns over $650,000 per post.
Business Ventures
The exorbitant wealth of James is also largely thanks to his business ventures and investments.
The four-time NBA champion owns two highly successful media production companies, Uninterrupted and SpringHill Entertainment. The former is widely popular for the documentaries it puts out, while the latter recently released Space Jam 2: A New Legacy, starring LeBron himself.
In addition, LeBron has an ownership stake in Fenway Sports Group, making him a co-owner of the world-renowned soccer club, Liverpool FC.
James has also made substantial investments in real estate around the Ohio area. Furthermore, he’s put a substantial amount of money into Blaze Pizza, which has become one of the fastest-growing pizza chains in the country thanks to his investments and endorsements of the brand.
It’s also a well-known fact that LeBron has his eyes set on owning an NBA team when his playing days are over. However, this doesn’t seem to be happening any time soon largely because he doesn’t intend on retiring until he gets a chance to play alongside his eldest son in an NBA game.
Family and Early Life
LeBron James was born in Akron, Ohio on December 30th, 1984. His mother, Gloria James, raised him on her own because his father was absent for most of his childhood.
The mother-son duo lived in a poverty-stricken environment and struggled to get by. As a result, James has had an incredibly close and strong relationship with his mother from a very young age.
His advanced physique and athletic abilities prompted him to get into sports early in his life, with his sports of choice being football and basketball.
He attributes a lot of his basketball knowledge and IQ to his middle school coach Dru Joyce, who saw LeBron’s potential and was keen on helping him make the most of it.
Personal Life
LeBron has been in a relationship with Savannah Brinson since his high school days. The NBA superstar got engaged to his high school sweetheart in 2011 and the two got married in San Diego a couple of years later.
The power couple has three kids together: LeBron Jr., Bryce Maximus, and Zhuri. James is highly involved in his kids’ lives and is constantly seen on the sidelines of their basketball games.
Throughout his career, James has been the subject of extreme public scrutiny. Even though pro athletes are prone to scandals, LeBron has managed to maintain his squeaky-clean image and has established himself as nothing but a model citizen.
He’s also highly keen on giving back to the community through the LeBron James Foundation. James also set up a school aptly named I Promise. Students at this school are guaranteed a full-ride for their college education upon their graduation courtesy of LeBron.
Career Journey
LeBron’s journey to becoming one of the finest basketball players of all time started at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio.
His pure athleticism and skills as a jack-of-all-trades player were on full display even during his freshman season. While typically freshmen ride the bench, LeBron quickly became a starter for the Fighting Irish, averaging 21 points per game (PPG) and 6 rebounds per game (RPG).
James’ success wasn’t just empty stats. It soon catapulted him into the state championship.
His fame as a star athlete continued to rise during his sophomore season, clinching a second consecutive state championship and averaging over 25 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals per game.
He became a hero in Ohio, earning Mr. Basketball honors. James also started garnering nationwide recognition, becoming the only sophomore in history to be part of the USA Today All-USA First Team.
During his junior and senior seasons, LeBron just kept getting stronger and faster. He raked in countless jaw-dropping highlights while leading his team to win after win.
He became a staple on ESPN Sportscenter and even graced the cover of prestigious magazines such as SLAM and Sports Illustrated.
As his high school career was coming to a close, James was receiving offers from virtually every college in the country. He entertained the thought of playing for his hometown Ohio Buckeyes, but ultimately decided to make the jump to the pros straight out of high school.
NBA Career
LeBron’s legendary NBA career has had many chapters, all of which have been highly eventful.
First Stint With Cleveland
When the summer of 2003 rolled around, there wasn’t much doubt in anyone’s mind as to who would be selected first overall in the NBA Draft.
This isn’t due to a lack of talent in the draft. In fact, the 2003 draft class is widely regarded as one of the best in NBA history. It featured future superstars such as Dwyane Wade, Carmelo Anthony, and Chris Bosh.
The certainty of James’ selection as the number one pick was due to his talent and the hype around him being so far beyond the rest of the field. It was also due to the fact that the first pick belonged to his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers.
Sure enough, the Cavs took LeBron with the first pick. The pressure on LeBron to prove that he was worth all the media attention and hype was instantaneous. This made his debut against the Sacramento Kings one of the most anticipated ever!
LeBron delivered, and in spectacular fashion too. However, his team didn’t experience much success in terms of winning during his rookie season.
Over the next seven years, LeBron carried the Cavs to five NBA Playoff appearances, as well as a trip to the NBA Finals in 2007. However, he just couldn’t get over the hump and deliver Cleveland its first-ever NBA title.
Miami Heat
In one of the most controversial decisions in the recent history of sports, James decided to leave the Cavs for the Miami Heat back in 2010. He teamed up with fellow draftees Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh in South Beach hoping to win his first ring.
The trio had a string of successes together. They even managed to make the finals three straight times and came out victorious in two of them.
Second Stint With Cleveland
In 2014, LeBron decided to return to his original playing grounds. He teamed up with Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love to take the Cavs to the 2015 finals, where they ran into the up-and-coming Golden State Warriors and came up short.
A year later, LeBron and the Cavs faced off with the Warriors in the finals again. The herculean efforts of LeBron and the heroics of Kyrie Irving allowed the Cavs to overcome a 3-1 deficit to bring Cleveland its long-awaited NBA Championship.
Los Angeles Lakers
After falling short in 2017 and 2018 against the Steph Curry and Kevin Durant-led Warriors, LeBron decided to start a new chapter in his career with the Lakers.
LeBron James’ first season in LA was underwhelming. So, the Lakers decided to accelerate their timeline by exchanging their young talent Lonzo Ball, Kyle Kuzma, and Brandon Ingram for superstar forward Anthony Davis.
The move ultimately paid off when the Lakers won the 2020 NBA championship, giving LeBron his fourth title.
Even if LeBron never wins another ring, he’ll undoubtedly go down as one of the greatest athletes of all time. His illustrious career is packed with accolades and records, including the following:
- Four-time NBA MVP
- Four-time NBA Finals MVP
- 18-time NBA All-Star
- 18-time All-NBA selection
- 2004 NBA Rookie of the Year
- Two-time Olympic Gold Medalist
- Second place on the all-time NBA scoring list
Conclusion
With salaries in the NBA getting larger and larger every year, pro basketball players are accumulating more and more riches. So, how much is LeBron James’ net worth?
As you’ve seen, the four-time NBA champion has earned himself a net worth of over $1 billion, going down in history as one of the richest athletes in the world!
Thanks to his speed, agility, and business acumen, James has amassed his wealth through earnings from the giant contracts he’s signed over the years with a variety of teams. He’s also established several alternative streams of income, including his endorsement deals, business ventures, and social media presence.
