One of the main talking points regarding LeBron James’ signing with the Philadelphia 76ers on July 24 was his salary cut. King James signed a two-year deal that will pay him $3.9 million next season.
It’s nearly a $50 million pay cut. It’s below his rookie salary of around $4 million. It’s the largest pay cut in NBA history.
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But it isn’t how James makes the bulk of his cash.
USA TODAY analyzed James’ annual salary and estimated endorsement earnings over the course of his career and found that he’s earned roughly 65% of his career earnings from endorsements — a figure that represents nearly two-thirds of his overall pay.
In total, James has earned over $1.5 billion (not inflation-adjusted) across his 23-season NBA career, with over $1 billion coming from endorsements. Per Sportico, he’s the fourth-highest paid athlete of all time behind Michael Jordan, Cristiano Ronaldo and Tiger Woods.
This means that while James’ salary for the 2026-27 season is around 92% less than his final Los Angeles Lakers salary, he’ll still be making a hefty paycheck from endorsement deals.
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Using James’ trend in endorsement earnings since 2021, USA TODAY calculates that his endorsement figure for 2026-27 would sit at around $91 million.
When combined with his salary number, James looks set to earn around $95 million for the upcoming season. And that’s not even factoring in James’ other business ventures, such as his minority partnership stake in Fenway Sports Group, which owns the Boston Red Sox, Liverpool Football Club and other sports and media holdings.
The pay cut will likely drop him down from No. 4 on Forbes’ highest paid athletes list, but a $95 million haul would still place him tied for No. 12 on the 2026 list, which was published in May. He’d be tied with soccer star Kylian Mbappe, one of the leading stars at the 2026 World Cup.
Of course, that’s just a trends-based estimate — it’s certainly plausible that James could earn even more from endorsements in the upcoming season.
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So, James is taking a big pay cut ― one that enables the 76ers to maintain a stacked roster that also includes Joel Embiid and Jaylen Brown ― his overall cash hit isn’t as harsh as it initially seems.
Methodology: Salary data from Spotrac’s year-by-year cash earnings table. Endorsement data through 2025-26 from Forbes. USA TODAY estimated the 2026-27 endorsement figure based on recent trends.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: LeBron James took a massive pay cut. He still makes bank.
