With the NBA star’s wealth at his disposal, KEVIN Durant may easily build an enormous business empire and become a billionaire.

The Phoenix Suns forward is well on his way to being one of the few professional athletes to become a billionaire, having earned about $400 million in his career thus far.

In doing so, Durant would become one of the select few, following in the footsteps of greats like Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, LeBron James, and Magic Johnson.

Among the many lucrative endorsement deals held by the power forward is a lifelong partnership he inked with Nike earlier this year.

This arrangement comes after Nike inked a staggering $300 million, 10-year pact in 2014.

Google, Alaska Air group, Beats by Dre, American Family Insurance, BBVA, Sparkling Ice, Panini, NBA 2K, Gatorade, Sonic Drive-in, Skullcandy, and Sprint are among the other companies that have sponsorship relationships.

The big forward solidified his place in NBA history with two rings and two Finals MVP awards before making the contentious transfer from the Oklahoma City Thunder to the Golden State Warriors in 2016.

While in the Bay Area, he dove headfirst into the tech investment world.

A number of influential Silicon Valley figures, including Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, as well as Apple and Google executives, became Durant’s friends.

Along with his longtime manager Rich Kleiman, Durant established his investing arm Thirty Five Ventures in 2016.

Since then, the company has put money into a bunch of startups and even a few professional sports clubs.

Athletes Unlimited, Gotham FC (the NWSL champions), Philadelphia Union (MLS franchise), Premier Lacrosse League, Major League Pickleball, and Athletes Unlimited are among businesses that Durant has invested in.

Coinbase, Yoshi, Rubrik, Postmates, Whoop, Robinhood, and Weedmaps are among the other investments, along with the $1.5 billion cryptocurrency startup.

The majority of investments have been between two hundred thousand and one million dollars, and the value of some of these deals has increased at an exponential rate.

Along with his work with the sports and culture media company Boardroom and his support for numerous movies centered around basketball, Durant is also an influential figure in the content space.

“You see the business of yourself first,” Durant told ESPN regarding his business philosophy.

You have a clear vision for the kind of person you want to be, the tales you want to tell, and the ways you want to use your resources to make things flourish.

“I made an effort to focus on my own business initially.

“Then I hired guys like [business partner] Rich [Kleiman], my financial guys, my foundation people that I’ve hired, just knowing that you can empower people to help push your vision.”

According to Durant, he is currently focusing more on investing in businesses and less on endorsement deals.

“There’s nothing wrong with them, but time is the most important thing to me,” he continues.

“And when you endorse a product, a lot of your time is taken away.”

Durant’s ultimate dream is to be the owner of an NBA franchise.

If only I could afford it. “It’s crazy,” he exclaims.

Managing the money is likely to be the most challenging aspect.

There are two outstanding groups that I have been a part of. I am well familiar with the game and its participants.

And these NBA teams, in my opinion, have a profound impact on people’s lives. They relocate towns. That sounds incredible to me.

“All the aspects of owning a team, I would love to be involved in – from the financial and marketing side to the team-building to the camaraderie to the coaching.”