Top 5 Richest NBA Players in 2025

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With multi-billion-dollar sponsorship deals and massively lucrative salary caps, the NBA players are often hailed as the richest athletes in the world. Over the years, numerous legendary National Basketball Association players, including LeBron James, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Stephen Curry, have signed deals exceeding $200–300 million, owing to the growing popularity of the format on a global scale.

According to the reports and financial statistics, the salary caps of National Basketball Association players have skyrocketed from around $200K in the 1980s to over $10 million in the 2020s. Moreover, in addition to their jaw-dropping salaries and highly lucrative brand endorsement deals, a majority of the National Basketball Association players have also ventured into investing and are currently investing actively in tech startups, real estate, and other fields that offer a high return.

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In this article we will take a look at the top five richest NBA players and their whopping net worth in 2025.

Top 5 Richest NBA Players in 2025

• Michael Jordan – USD 1.5 Billion

Often popularly referred to as “MJ”, American businessman and former professional basketball player Michael Jordan is at the first spot in our list of the top five richest NBA players in 2025. Michael Jordan played a phenomenal total of fifteen seasons in the National Basketball Association between 1984 and 2003, clinching a record total of six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls.

According to the reports, one of the greatest shooting guards of the Chicago Bulls of all-time, Michael Jordan, holds a staggering net worth of USD 1.5 billion as of April 2025, making him the richest player in the history of the National Basketball Association.

• Magic Johnson – USD 1.5 Billion

At the second spot in our list of the top five richest NBA players in 2025, we have Earvin ‘Magic’ Johnson Jr. often popularly hailed as one of the greatest point-guards in the history of the National Basketball Association, with a whopping net worth of USD 1.5 billion. Magic Johnson created history after spending his entire NBA career with the Los Angeles Lakers after being selected first overall in the 1979 NBA Draft by the Lakers.

Well, in his thirteen-year-long NBA career for the Lakers, Magic Johnson successfully led the team to five NBA championships during their iconic “Showtime” era. Although Johnson announced a shocking and sudden retirement from the National Basketball Association in 1991 after he contracted HIV, the iconic point guard of the Lakers made a roaring comeback in the 1992 All-Star Game, clinching the All-Star MVP Award.

• LeBron James – USD 1.2 Billion

The 40-year-old American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association, LeBron James, also popularly referred to as “King James”, is at the third spot in our list of the top five richest NBA players in 2025, with an unbelievable net worth of USD 1.2 billion.

LeBron James is currently the NBA’s all-time leading scorer and has successfully clinched four NBA championships from 10 National Basketball Association Finals appearances, speaking volumes about his dominance on the court. Additionally, LeBron James has also won the inaugural National Basketball Association Cup in 2023 with the Lakers and has clinched a record total of three Olympic gold medals as a member of the U.S. national team.

• Shaquille O’ Neal – USD 500 Million

Next, at the fourth spot in our list of the top five richest National Basketball Association players in 2025, we have the legendary American former professional basketball player who is currently a sports analyst on the television program Inside the NBA, Shaquille O’ Neal, also popularly referred to by his nickname “Shaq”. The iconic centre, Shaquille O’Neal, who played for a total of six National Basketball Association teams in his glorious career that spanned over nineteen years, is a four-time NBA champion (2000-2002, 2006), a four-time Finals MVP (2000-2002), a fifteen-times NBA All-Star (1993–1998, 2000–2007, 2009) and a two-time scoring champion (1995,2000). According to recent reports and financial statistics, Shaquille O’ Neal holds a staggering net worth of USD 500 million as of April 2025, making him the fourth-richest NBA player in the world.

• Russell Westbrook – USD 300 Million

Finally, at the fifth spot in our list of the top five richest National Basketball Association players in 2025, we have an American professional basketball player for the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association, Russell Westbrook, with a whopping net worth of USD 300 million.

As of April 2025, Russell Westbrook has played for a total of six National Basketball Association teams, including Oklahoma City Thunder (2008-2019), Houston Rockets (2019-2020), Washington Wizards (2020-2021), Los Angeles Lakers (2021-2023), Los Angeles Clippers (2023-2024) and Denver Nuggets (2024-present). In his glorious National Basketball Association career so far, Russel Westbrook has been a two-time All-Star Game MVP (2015,2016), a nine-time All-Star (2011–2013, 2015–2020) and a two-time NBA scoring champion (2015,2017).

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