Sports

LEBRON JAMES: How the king of the NBA spends his millions

By Cork Gaines , Tony Manfred ,and Emmett Knowlton
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LeBron James
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

On the court, LeBron James has won four MVPs and two NBA championships and has reached five consecutive NBA Finals — all before turning 30.

Off the court, he's equally relentless. On Monday, James signed a lifetime endorsement deal with Nike — a move that was so big it is more like the merger of two corporations — becoming the first athlete in the company's 44-year history to do so.

As a result of his unwavering successes on and off the court, James has amassed amazing cars and houses and still has time for his surprisingly normal family. King James is also well on his way toward his goal of becoming a billion-dollar athlete.

LeBron has made $169,643,842 in career NBA salary, good enough for fourth most all-time. He's only 30.

lebron james
Ezra Shaw/Getty

Source: Basketball Reference

He makes around $44 million per year — nearly twice his NBA salary — in endorsements.

lebron kia
YouTube/Kia Motors America

Source: Forbes

He's regularly in ad campaigns for huge companies like Samsung.

lebron samsung ad
YouTube

He also has a monster deal with Nike. The company signed him to a seven-year, $93 million deal right out of high school, and in December 2015 it signed him to a lifetime deal that will go far beyond the standard shoe endorsement.

LeBron James Nike
Steve Dykes/AP

Read more: "LeBron James just signed the biggest endorsement deal in Nike history"

James also recently decided to not renew his endorsement deal with McDonald's and will instead become a spokesman for Blaze Pizza, a company where he was a founding investor.

Assembly Line Format blaze pizza
Blaze Pizza

Read more: "LeBron James has turned his back on McDonald's to bet on a Chipotle-style pizza chain"

Economists have estimated he's worth as much as $500 million to the city of Cleveland.

LeBron James
AP/Bill Kostroun

Source: Time

He's also quite the businessman himself. He owns a piece of Liverpool FC.

LeBron James at Liverpool FC
AP Images

Source: Sporting News

Warren Buffett said of LeBron, "He's savvy. He's smart about financial matters. It's amazing to me the maturity he exhibits."

LeBron James at Liverpool FC
AP Images

Source: Sporting News

Just earlier this week, his new media venture got $16 million from Warner Bros.

LeBron James Amy Schumer
Duane Prokop/Getty

Source: Bloomberg

He also helped design a $51,000 watch.

Lebron James
Youtube Screen Grab

Source: Forbes

All that savvy has allowed him to buy some sweet toys. Dwyane Wade and he have matching Porsches. It's unclear who has which color.

wade lebron cars
@dwyanewade

He also owns a Rolls-Royce Phantom with TVs in the seats.

lebron rolls royce ghost
@lebronjames

But he insists that he drives a Kia, even to work.

When he joined the Miami Heat, he bought a $9 million home in Coconut Grove. He sold it for a $4 million profit.

lebron house
Obeo

Read more: "LeBron James just sold his Miami mansion for $4 million profit"

He also owns a 30,000-square-foot compound in his hometown of Akron, Ohio. In the past, he's hosted Thanksgiving there for his entire team.

heat thanksgiving
@kingjames

One of the ways he splurges on his own body is by using a controversial cryotherapy chamber, which exposes the body to temperatures of -150 to -290 degrees Fahrenheit, to relieve pain and enhance muscle recovery.

cryotherapy vegas
Youtube/Entertainment Tonight

Read more: "A 24-year-old woman was recently found dead in one of the freezing chambers that celebrities like Demi Moore swear by"

LeBron also uses one of the most exclusive tattoo artists in the country, Bang Bang Tattoos in New York City, which charges a minimum of $350 per hour.

LeBron James
YouTube/Beats by Dre

Read more: "This tattoo artist inks all the hottest celebrities — for a minimum of $350 an hour"

His lavish purchases aren't just for himself. He bought his wife Savannah Brinson a reported $300,000 engagement ring.

savannah lebron wife
@kingjames

Source: Hollywood Life

LeBron and Savannah are high-school sweethearts, and they have three kids together.

lebron selfie
@kingjames

Their wedding was a three-day party in San Diego.

lebron savannah
@kingjames

They went to Italy for their honeymoon.

LeBron James honeymoon
Instagram

Savannah runs a juice bar in Miami, which she opened when James was still with the Heat.

lebron juice spot
@kingjames

The only time we really see him let loose is when he wins something, ...

lebron james championship parade outfit
Instagram

... like when he wore this awesome fang shirt at a nightclub after the Heat won the title in 2012, ...

lebron fang shirt
YouTube

... or when he ate pizza onstage with Drake after winning it all one year later.

lebron james drake club liv
YouTube

He's also been known to take costume parties seriously. Earlier this year he made a cameo as Prince and did a decent "Purple Rain" lip sync.

Lebron James dressed as Prince
screengrab via Instagram

Read more: "Here's video of LeBron James dressed as Prince for a Halloween party"

But in general he keeps himself out of the gossip pages. He even rode his bike to a game when he played in Miami.

lebron bike
@jackNruth

LeBron James re-signed with the Cavs this season on a one-year deal for $23 million. By waiting to sign a long-term extension, and because of the pending salary cap explosion, the move will make him millions in the long run.

LeBron James
Tony Manfred/Business Insider

Read more: "LeBron James re-signs with the Cavs on a one-year deal that sets him up to make millions more long-term"

After another missed NBA Finals opportunity, James is hungrier than ever this season.

LeBron James
Ken Blaze-USA Today Sports

Now relive Tim Duncan's NBA draft class:

tim duncan
Patrick Smith/Getty

WHERE ARE THEY NOW? The players from Tim Duncan's 1997 NBA draft class »

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Cork Gaines
Cork Gaines
Cork was a correspondent for Insider's sports desk.Previously, he was a contributor at MLB Trade Rumors, and he has written for Yahoo Sports, Deadspin, and The Hardball Times. He has authored chapters in three books, including "The Hardball Times 2009 Season Preview." Cork's work has been featured on ESPN's "SportsCenter" and "Mike & Mike," "Any Given Wednesday with Bill Simmons," ESPN.com, BBC, Yahoo, USA Today, Sports Illustrated, Drudge Report, the Washington Post, the Kansas City Star, the Houston Chronicle, and the Dallas Morning News, among others.He is a graduate of the University of Iowa and holds a doctorate from Fordham University.Here is a selection of his work:Under Armour hit the jackpot on its Jordan Spieth betGary Woodland once took his pants off to hit a shot and learned a funny lesson about product endorsementWe tried the alcohol diet Tom Brady put Rob Gronkowski on, and it was a lot harder than we imaginedThe University of Texas spent $7 million remodeling their football locker room and the results are jaw-droppingStephen Curry has replaced LeBron James as the best basketball player in the worldEx-NBA player who made $60 million explains what really happens to your money when you sign an 8-figure contractHere's Michael Jordan's 56,000-square-foot house in Chicago, and why it's still on the market after 6 yearsMayweather beat McGregor with a TKO in the 10th round! Here are the big moments everybody will be talking aboutPerfect conditions at Cowboys-Patriots game helped create incredible picturesWe've been using Alexa in a car for 6 months and it's the best infotainment system we've ever used.
Tony Manfred
Tony Manfred
Tony Manfred is the head of video for Insider Inc. He oversees video across the company, including the Business Insider, INSIDER, Business Insider Today, and Insider Productions teams. He helped start INSIDER in 2015, focusing on social video before expanding the scope of our video efforts into new formats and platforms. He began working at Business Insider in 2011. He previously worked as a sports reporter and sports editor for BI.
Emmett Knowlton
Emmett Knowlton
Emmett Knowlton writes for Business Insider's sports page. He graduated from Amherst College in 2015 and lives in New York.
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