LeBron James career earnings: What team has superstar earned the most from during time in NBA?

LeBron James has broken many records on the court during his storied NBA career, but he’s been just as successful off the court. 

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Now, he’ll look to continue that success with a new chapter in his illustrious NBA tenure, this time with the 76ers. It was announced on Friday that James agreed to a two-year, $8 million deal to join Philadelphia. 

The NBA’s all-time leading scorer played the first 23 years of his career with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers, steadily earning more money as his career progressed. In fact, James has arguably been more successful in his bank account than on an NBA court, which is impressive considering all of his success as a player.

James certainly benefited from the growing cap in the NBA over the past two decades, thanks to new media deals and other avenues of income. James has also had different distinct stages of his career, and it shows in how much money he earned with his different teams.

Here’s a look at James’ career earnings and how they are organized by team.

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LeBron James career earnings

James has made the most money of any player in NBA history, earning over $581 million in his 23 years as a professional NBA player. That amount of money comes over the course of three different teams and 10 different contracts, as he never played more than four years on the same deal.

The only other player to earn more than $500 million in their career is Kevin Durant, who is now at over $501 million following last season. Stephen Curry will be the next player to reach that threshold, which should happen next season.

LeBron James career earnings by team

Cleveland Cavaliers

• Years: 11
• Earnings: $169,884,342

James had two different stints with the Cavaliers, and the second one was more fruitful than the first. As the No. 1 pick in the 2003 NBA draft, James signed a rookie contract that netted him over $4 million a year for the first three seasons along with a $5.8 million club option.

From 2007-2010, James played on a four-year, $60.38 million extension, making an average of just over $15 million per season in that span. In those first seven years, James earned around $80 million in total.

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James returned to Cleveland in the Summer of 2014, earning much more money as he was by then a two-time NBA champion living up to his high expectations. James initially signed a two-year, $42 million deal with the Cavaliers, with a player option for the second season, and he would go on to sign similar deals in 2015 and 2016, a two-year deal for $47 million in 2015 and a three-year deal for $100 million in 2016.

James ultimately opted out of the three-year deal in 2018, becoming a free agent for the third time. Overall, James made around $110 million in his second go-round with the Cavaliers, bringing his Cleveland earnings total to over $169 million

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Miami Heat

• Years: 4
• Earnings: $64,008,659

When James signed with the Heat as a free agent in the 2010 offseason, he agreed to a six-year, $110 million to head to South Beach. While making just over $18 million a season, James played out just four years of that deal, as he had an early termination clause that allowed him to hit free agency again in 2014.

Los Angeles Lakers

• Years: 8
• Earnings: $347,482,547

In 2018, James signed the biggest contract of his career, as he went to the Lakers on a four-year, $153 million deal with Los Angeles. Just like his previous contracts, James had a player option for the final year of that deal, and he used it in 2021.

James went on to sign three straight sets of two-year deals with the Lakers over the next four years. His deals went for $85 million in 2021, $99 million in 2023, and $101 million in 2024. James closed his Lakers tenure by playing out the last year of his fourth contract with the team, bringing his total earnings with the team to over $347 million.

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LeBron James net worth

According to Forbes, James has an estimated worth of $1.4 billion split between his on-court earnings and off-court ventures. James became the first NBA player to become a billionaire, as his off-court sponsorship deals include Nike, Amazon, DraftKings and Fanatics.

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