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The 28 highest-paid players in the NBA for the 2019-20 season

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On-court NBA salaries are based on a player’s number of years in the league and accolades earned, such as awards like MVP which entitle players to a larger percentage of a team’s salary cap. Now let’s get down to it.

28. CJ McCollum

Team: Portland Trail Blazers

Salary: $27,556,959

27. DeMar DeRozan

Team: San Antonio Spurs

Salary: $27,739,975

26. Al Horford

Team: Philadelphia 76ers

Salary: $28,000,000

25. Nikola Vucevic

Team: Orlando Magic 

Salary: $28,000,000

24. Kevin Love

Team: Cleveland Cavaliers 

Salary: $28,942,830

23. Paul Millsap

Team: Denver Nuggets

Salary: $30,350,000

22. Khris Middleton

Team: Milwaukee Bucks

Salary: $30,603,448

21. Kyrie Irving

Team: Brooklyn Nets

Salary: $31,742,000

20. Mike Conley

Team: Utah Jazz 

Salary: $32,511,624

19.Gordon Hayward

Team: Boston Celtics 

Salary: $32,700,690

18. Tobias Harris

Team: Philadelphia 76ers

Salary: $32,742,000

17. Kahwi Leonard

Team: Los Angeles Clippers 

Salary: $32,742,000

16. Kemba Walker

Team: Boston Celtics 

Salary: $32,742,000

15. Jimmy Butler

Team: Miami Heat 

Salary: $32,742,000

14. Paul George

Team: Los Angeles Clippers

Salary: $33,005,556

13. Black Griffin

Team: Detroit Pistons 

Salary: $34,449,964

12. Kyle Lowry

Team: Toronto Raptors

Salary: $34,996,296 

11. John Wall

Team: Washington Wizards 

Salary: $38,199,000

The Top 

Rankings for NBA stars salary are largely determined by their off-court income – with sneaker contracts making up the majority of those earnings. We’ve included endorsements in the Top 10 according to Forbes to give a clear picture of the kind of money these NBA stars are earning. 

10. Damian Lillard

Salary: $29,802,321

Endorsements: $14 million

Oregan-based Damian Lillard signed a 5 year contract with Portland Trail Blazers and has endorsement deals with Adidas, Powerade, Spalding, Panini, Foot Locker, JBL, Biofreeze, Moda Health, and Hulu. Lilliard would not have made our top 10 based on salary alone, in 2014 he negotiated a 10 year deal with Adidas worth up to $100 million, seeing him come in at number 10 for the 2019/20 highest paid NBA players with an estimated total of $43.8 million.

9. Giannis Antetokounmpo

Salary: $25,842,697

Endorsements: $20 million

Greek-born Giannis Antetokounmpo who plays for the Milwaukee Bucks on a 4 year contract makes our number 9,  at an estimated total of $45.8 million, where without endorsements he would only have been the 41st highest paid player. Giannis has endorsement deals with Nike, Hulu, T-Mobile, JBL and 2K Sports. Signing a deal with Nike in 2017 reported to pay an estimated $9 million in the first year. Nike released his first signature shoe in 2019. His second edition dropped just a few weeks ago.

8. Chris Paul

Salary: $38,506,482

Endorsements: $8 million

Oklahoma City Thunder’s point guard Chris Paul’s salary of $38,506,482 is the second highest NBA salary in the 2019/20 season. Paul has endorsement deals with Nike, Spalding and Walt Disney, as well as being a regular in commercials for insurance giant State Farm. We estimate his 2019/20 salary at a total of $46.5 million.

7. Klay Thompson

Salary: $32,742,000

Endorsements: $15 million

Known as one of the best shooters in NBA history, Golden State Warrior Klay Thompson finds his place at number 7 on our list. Making 72.42 percent more than in 2018/19, and with endorsements from Panini, BodyArmor, Anta Sports Products, Electronic Arts, and Gillette, we estimate this NBA star at a total salary of $47.7 million for 2019/20 season.

6. Kyrie Irving

Salary: $31,742,000

Endorsements: $20 million

Kyrie Irving signed a 4 year contract with the Brooklyn Nets, seeing his on-court salary come in at $31,742,000 this season. Irving endorses major brands including  Nike and Pepsi, seeing his total estimated income at $51.7 million. His Nike shoe is among the NBA’s top sellers, and Irving donated $1.5 million to help cover the salaries of WNBA players sitting out this season.

5. James Harden

Salary: $37,800,000

Endorsements: $17 million

One of the NBA’s most prolific scorers, James Harden cements the top 5 on our list. Three times league MVP runner up in 2015, 2017,and 2019, and 2018 ‘s MVP, Harden has partnered with Amazon to share his go-to workout products, and has endorsement deals with Adidas and BodyArmor. This season his estimated salary comes in at $54.8 million.

4. Russell Westbrook

Salary: $38,178,000

Endorsements: $18 million

Nine-time NBA All-Star, Russell Westbrook, signed a 5 year Super Max contract with Oklahoma City Thunder and was traded to the Houston Rockets. A year after signing the largest contract in Jordan Brand history in 2017, Westbrook got his own signature shoe. Apart from Nike, Russell endorses global brands like Samsung and PepsiCo, giving him an estimated total income of $56 million for the 2019/20 NBA season.

3. Kevin Durant

Salary: $37,199,000

Endorsements: $35 million

Power Forward Kevin Durant plays on a 4 year contract for the Brooklyn Nets. This ten-time All-Star earns an estimated $35 million from endorsement deals with Nike, Google and Alaska air group. Durant is also an avid investor with stakes in more than a 100 emerging companies. We see him at number 3 with a total of $72 million this 2019/2020 season.

2. Stephen Curry

Salary: $40,231,758

Endorsements: $45 million

Golden State Warriors’ point guard Stephen Curry, is the highest-paid NBA player of the season. Analysts and players alike have called him the greatest shooter in NBA history. Since 2014, Stephen has had a shoe deal with Under Armour, which contributes to his endorsement income (which has tripled in the last year), among other partnerships with JP Morgan Chase, Vivo and Brita. His total income this season comes in at an estimated total of $85 million.

1. LeBron James 

Salary: $37,436,858

Endorsements: $55 million

Based on salary alone, LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers would otherwise have ranked in at #4 on the list, however, with Nike as his biggest backer, LeBron lands the number 1 spot for highest paid NBA player for the sixth year straight, coming in at an estimated $92 million for the 2019/2020 NBA season. James holds equity in a number of companies, including his own film and TV brand the SpringHill Company, which co-produced the upcoming sequel to Space Jam. 

 

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