What Is the Average NBA Salary?
By The Big Lead
Player salaries in the sports world have risen dramatically over the past decade due to high visibility and massive TV contracts. Franchises are more valuable than ever and the resulting revenues have been passed on to athletes. Nowhere is that more apparent than the NBA, where average salary among players is the highest in professional sports.
What is the average NBA salary?
The minimum salary for players signing contracts during the 2023-24 season is $1.1 million. That is for a player with no years of experience, but the minimum deal for a veteran with 10 or more years of experience is $3.2 million. When you combine the numbers from salaries across the league, the average NBA salary winds up at around $9.7 million. That figure is far higher than the average MLB salary ($4.9 million) and massive compared to the NFL's number of $2.8 million.
What is the Highest NBA Salary?
The NBA's top players make more money per year than any other athletes. For the 2023-24 season, Stephen Curry has the biggest salary are $51.9 million, followed by Nikola Jokic and LeBron James at $47.6 million each. Those numbers certainly lift the league's average salary considerably. As of right now, Curry will remain the highest-paid player until Giannis Antetokounmpo's pay steps up to $68 million at the start of the '25-'26 season.
What is the Lowest NBA Salary?
Pete Nance and Taze Moore are both on the books for $64,343 this year. Nance has appeared in two games for the Cleveland Cavaliers while Moore has played in three games for the Portland Trail Blazers.
Onuralp Bitim has the Chicago Bulls is making $334,582 this season and is listed as the 483rd salary on ESPN.com. Bitim signed a two-way contract with the Bulls last summer and then signed a standard deal in February. He has appeared in four games this season.
What is the 2024-2025 NBA Salary Cap?
As of January 30th, the '24-'25 NBA salary cap is projected to be $141 million. According to Spotrac the Los Angeles Clippers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Golden State Warriors, Phoenix Suns and Philadelphia 76ers are all approximately $100 million over that figure already.