LeBron James has knocked off another milestone in his illustrious career, becoming the first active NBA player in history to officially become a billionaire.
According to Forbes, James earned a total of $166.5 million last year, putting his estimated net worth over the magical ten-figure mark.
James joins Michael Jordan as the only other basketball player to become a billionaire, although Jordan did not reach the mark until 2014, over a decade after his retirement.
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While James has earned over $530 million in salaries over his 19-year career with the Cleveland Cavaliers, Miami Heat and Los Angeles Lakers, he’s become a business mogul in the second half of his career, racking up over $1.24 billion in income from endorsements and other business ventures.
One of the biggest incentives behind James’ move from Cleveland to Los Angeles in 2018 was his proximity with Hollywood, and he’s already had his hand in a number of huge projects since.
James and his business partner Maverick Carter founded SpringHill Entertainment in 2007 before combining it with his athlete platform Uninterrupted and another company to form the SpringHill Company in 2020.
SpringHill has helped produce Space Jam: A New Legacy as well as a recent Netflix series about tennis star Naomi Osaka.
James sold a “significant minority stake” to a handful of investors last October, and while he is still the largest shareholder in the company, his stake is not believed to exceed 50 per cent and is estimated to be worth $414 million, per Forbes.
Along with making strides into Hollywood, James has also steadily ventured into the team ownership sphere through his relationship with Fenway Sports Group.
James entered into a partnership with Fenway back in 2011 and received a minority stake in English Premier League side Liverpool, before exchanging that stake for part ownership with FSG.
Fenway also owns the Boston Red Sox in Major League Baseball and has also added the National Hockey League’s Pittsburgh Penguins to its portfolio in the last year.
James has long spoken about owning his own NBA team, as Jordan does with the Charlotte Hornets, and his relationship with FSG is sure to expedite that process once he eventually retires. The stake in Fenway is estimated to be worth $90 million USD ($124 million AUD), per Forbes.
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