After refusing an automatic 1-year extension agreement with the Los Angeles Lakers with a salary of nearly 50 million USD, LeBron James did not take too much time to negotiate a new contract with the Crypto.com Arena team.
Accordingly, LeBron James will extend his contract with the Los Angeles Lakers for another 2 years, with a salary of 104 million USD. This contract includes a 1-year extension clause at the player’s option (Player Option) for the 2025/26 season. This gives LeBron James flexibility in choosing where to end his career.
The Sporting News provides information about the contracts that LeBron James has signed during his entire NBA career.
History of LeBron James’ contracts in the NBA
Since joining the NBA in 2003, LeBron James has signed a total of 10 career contracts.
2003 — 4 years — $18.8 million on rookie contract with Cleveland Cavaliers
After being selected by his hometown team Cleveland Cavaliers in Pick 1 of the 2003 NBA Draft, LeBron James received his first contract in the NBA with a term of 4 years, worth 18.8 million USD.
Rookie players in the NBA are not allowed to negotiate their first contract, and this is the salary calculated according to the salary bracket of that year’s NBA Draft. On average, LeBron James earned less than $5 million per year during this period.
2006 — 4 years – $60.4 million with Cleveland Cavaliers
3 years later, LeBron James received the first major contract of his career. He signed a 4-year contract extension with the Cleveland Cavaliers, worth $60.4 million in the summer of 2006.
2010 — 6 years – $110 million with Miami Heat
In the summer of 2010, LeBron James became a free agent. At that time, LeBron James’ future was one of the most concerning issues. LeBron James wants a title, but 7 years playing at the Cleveland Cavaliers shows that this team cannot build a strong enough squad to meet his ambitions.
After that, the Cleveland Cavaliers and Miami Heat came to a “Sign and trade” agreement regarding the case of LeBron James. He landed at the Miami Heat to form a “Superteam” with Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, in return the Cavaliers will receive some benefits in the NBA Draft. This deal became extremely famous, along with the show “The Decision” which caused a lot of controversy about loyalty or glory at the time.
2014 — 2 years – $42.2 million with Cleveland Cavaliers
After 4 years playing for the Miami Heat and winning 2 NBA championship titles, LeBron James wants to return to his hometown of Cleveland to help this team fulfill their championship dream.
He rejected the previously signed automatic extension terms to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the summer of 2014 with a 2-year contract worth $42.2 million.
2015 — 2 years — $47 million with Cleveland Cavaliers
After 1 year of competition, the Cleveland Cavaliers have proven that they have a strong enough framework to support LeBron James, with the appearance of Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving. In 2015, LeBron James extended his contract for 2 more years with the Cleveland Cavaliers, with a salary of only 47 million USD so that the team could have enough salary fund to build a squad.
Right in the 2015/16 season, LeBron James fulfilled his dream of bringing home the championship to the Cleveland Cavaliers.
2016 — 3 years – $100 million with Cleveland Cavaliers
After the 2016 championship, LeBron James once again refused an automatic extension with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He aims to sign a 3-year, $100 million contract extension with the Ohio State football team.
2018 — 4 years – $153.5 million with Los Angeles Lakers
In the summer of 2018, LeBron James refused the automatic extension clause with the Cleveland Cavaliers to become a free agent. At that time, many teams expressed interest in this star, but all rumors showed that this player was ready to come to the Los Angeles Lakers to inherit Kobe Bryant’s legacy.
LeBron James signed a 4-year, $153.5 million contract with the Los Angeles Lakers in the summer of 2018.
2020 — 2 years – $86 million with Los Angeles Lakers
After winning the NBA title in the 2019/20 season with the Los Angeles Lakers, LeBron James continued to renew with this team for 2 more years, with a salary of 86 million USD.
2022 — 2 years – $99 million with Los Angeles Lakers
After the old contract expired, LeBron James quickly reached an agreement with the Los Angeles Lakers on a 2-year contract, worth $99 million from the 2022/23 season.
2024 — 2 years – $104 million with Los Angeles Lakers
After his son Bronny James was selected in Pick 55 of the 2024 NBA Draft, it was rumored that LeBron James would reduce his salary so that the Los Angeles Lakers could have enough money to build a roster.
However, after the Lakers could not attract good players on the free market, LeBron James signed an extension with the club with a 2-year contract, with a salary of 104 million USD. This contract includes a 1-year extension clause at the player’s discretion (Player Option) for the 2025/26 season.
Total salary income during LeBron James’ entire career in the NBA
After 21 seasons in the NBA, LeBron James has earned a total of $479.5 million in salary. The new agreement with the Los Angeles Lakers will certainly bring this player’s total income to over 500 million USD.
There were many times when LeBron James was not the highest paid player on the team. However, this player’s incredible persistence helps him earn a stable income from competition contracts. The current second-ranked player in salary income in the NBA is Kevin Durant, who also has only $396.7 million.
LeBron James’ numbers will certainly soon be surpassed by the next generation, as the NBA’s salary fund is increasing, especially compared to the time when LeBron James entered the NBA 21 years ago. However, perhaps no one can match this player’s tenacity, as LeBron James is still one of the best names in the world even though he is nearly 40 years old.
