Wembanyama could be the first pro basketball player to earn $1B simply from on-court earnings

Spurs F Victor Wembanyama could become the “first professional basketball player to earn $1 billion on the court,” according to Randall Williams of BLOOMBERG NEWS.

While several well-known basketball players have become “rich with help from endorsement deals and other business ventures,” Wembanyama “stands to enter the ranks of the ultra-wealthy purely by lacing up his sneakers and stepping onto the hardwood night in and night out.” Few other sports stars have “attained billionaire status without help from businesses beyond the field.”

Lakers F LeBron James was “helped by successful ventures” like entertainment firm SpringHill Company; a deal with sneaker giant Nike Inc. “worth more than” $1B; and an ownership stake in Fenway Sports Group.

For Michael Jordan, notable ventures include the sale of the Hornets, a “groundbreaking sneaker deal” with Nike, and “endorsement pacts” with McDonald’s, Gatorade and Hanes.

Wembanyama has indicated that he “doesn’t want to mimic his predecessors.”

So far, he has “favored smaller deals he sees as more closely aligned with his personal values.”

Young players like Wembanyama, who are “more conscious of their personal brand and are earning more from playing than previous generations, are becoming more selective.”

Williams noted a “case in point” is Wembanyama’s deal with Barcode. Instead of “offering a big payday up front,” Barcode won over Wembanyama by “giving him an opportunity to invest.”

Sources said that Wembanyama had “lucrative offers from competing sports drinks Gatorade and BodyArmor,” but Wembanyama said that Barcode was “more in step with his priorities”