Women Behind to the 10 Richest NBA Players Ever
By NoelGRSr
Image: Instagram/Laticia
It’s fair to say that these past and present NBA legends have done all right for themselves in the amassing-a-fortune stakes. And while each is blessed with world-class basketball ability and a healthy dose of business acumen, they all have something else in common: the backing of an exceptional woman. Read on to discover more about the women behind the scenes.
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Retired point guard Gary “The Glove” Payton may have spent 13 lucrative seasons with the Seattle SuperSonics, but his sole NBA title came while playing for Miami Heat in 2006. Payton’s net worth is believed to total around $130 million.
10. Gary Payton
Retired point guard Gary “The Glove” Payton may have spent 13 lucrative seasons with the Seattle SuperSonics, but his sole NBA title came while playing for Miami Heat in 2006. Payton’s net worth is believed to total around $130 million.
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Payton wedded Monique James in the summer of 1997, with the couple having met while at high school in Oakland, California. They’ve got three kids: Julian, Gary II and Raquel.
Monique James
Payton wedded Monique James in the summer of 1997, with the couple having met while at high school in Oakland, California. They’ve got three kids: Julian, Gary II and Raquel.
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Former NBA All-Star participant Grant Hill had an amazing 19-season career, including seven years with the Orlando Magic, who got him on their books in 2000 with a contract worth $93 million. Hill’s net worth today is around $180 million.
9. Grant Hill
Former NBA All-Star participant Grant Hill had an amazing 19-season career, including seven years with the Orlando Magic, who got him on their books in 2000 with a contract worth $93 million. Hill’s net worth today is around $180 million.
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Hill married Canadian R&B star Tamia in 1999, with the pair having been introduced in Detroit by Grammy Award-winning singer Anita Baker. They have a couple of daughters together.
Tamia
Hill married Canadian R&B star Tamia in 1999, with the pair having been introduced in Detroit by Grammy Award-winning singer Anita Baker. They have a couple of daughters together.
Image: Elsa/Getty Images8. Kevin Garnett
NBA winner Kevin Garnett has so far amassed a personal fortune of approximately $180 million during his 20-year professional career, with his multi-million-dollar salary topped up by various endorsements.
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After a long romance, Garnett married Brandi Padilla in July 2004. “The Big Ticket” missed out on that year’s Olympics in Athens, Greece to tie the knot.
Brandi Padilla
After a long romance, Garnett married Brandi Padilla in July 2004. “The Big Ticket” missed out on that year’s Olympics in Athens, Greece to tie the knot.
Image: Brian Bahr/Allsport
Celebrated Basketball Hall of Famer Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon’s incredible career came to an end in 2002. He’s since reportedly made $100 million in real estate deals, while his overall fortune is approximately $200 million.
7. Hakeem Olajuwon
Celebrated Basketball Hall of Famer Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon’s incredible career came to an end in 2002. He’s since reportedly made $100 million in real estate deals, while his overall fortune is approximately $200 million.
Image: Bruno Torres/AFP/Getty ImagesDalia Asafi
In accordance with his Islamic faith, it was prearranged that Olajuwon would tie the knot with the then 18-year-old Dalia Asafi in 1996. He said at the time that she possessed “wisdom beyond her
years.”
Image: via forum.basketevolution.com
Ulysses Lee “Junior” Bridgeman – whose iconic number 2 jersey was discontinued by the Milwaukee Bucks following his retirement in 1988 – has a fortune of between $250 million and $400 million. How? Largely thanks to his hugely successful Wendy’s franchise empire.
6. Junior Bridgeman
Ulysses Lee “Junior” Bridgeman – whose iconic number 2 jersey was discontinued by the Milwaukee Bucks following his retirement in 1988 – has a fortune of between $250 million and $400 million. How? Largely thanks to his hugely successful Wendy’s franchise empire.
Image: via Restaurant BusinessDoris Bridgeman
Bridgeman has been married to wife Doris for almost 40 years, with the pair’s three grown-up kids – Ryan, Justin and Eden, pictured here – all doing their bit within the super-lucrative family firm.
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Four-time NBA winner Shaquille “Shaq” O’Neal’s imposing 7 foot 1 inch frame is eclipsed only by his net worth of some $350 million, which was earned mostly through salary and sponsorships.
5. Shaquille O’Neal
Four-time NBA winner Shaquille “Shaq” O’Neal’s imposing 7 foot 1 inch frame is eclipsed only by his net worth of some $350 million, which was earned mostly through salary and sponsorships.
Image: Noel Vasquez/Getty Images for Hennessy
Shaq has been dating onetime model Laticia Rolle since summer 2014. Despite the relative recency of the pair’s romance, though, they’ve already enjoyed vacations to Florida, Paris and London.
Laticia Rolle
Shaq has been dating onetime model Laticia Rolle since summer 2014. Despite the relative recency of the pair’s romance, though, they’ve already enjoyed vacations to Florida, Paris and London.
Image: Stephen Dunn/Getty Images4. Kobe Bryant
Veteran Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard – and five-time NBA champion – Kobe Bryant enjoys a $23.5 million yearly salary and $26 million in endorsements. His net worth is $360 million.
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Bryant married dancer Vanessa Laine in November 2001, and the Bryants now have two daughters – Natalia Diamante, who arrived in 2003, and Gianna Maria-Onore, who was born three years later.
Vanessa Bryant
Bryant married dancer Vanessa Laine in November 2001, and the Bryants now have two daughters – Natalia Diamante, who arrived in 2003, and Gianna Maria-Onore, who was born three years later.
Image: Joe Robbins/Getty Images3. LeBron James
Two-time NBA champion LeBron James turned pro in 2003 and has a net worth that some claim tops $425 million. “King James” is, according to Forbes, the world’s 18th-highest-paid celebrity.
Image: Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
James’ wife Savannah Brinson has long supported him, with the pair’s romance harking right the way back to high school. They already had three kids when they married in September 2013.
Savannah Brinson
James’ wife Savannah Brinson has long supported him, with the pair’s romance harking right the way back to high school. They already had three kids when they married in September 2013.
Image: Mike Powell/Getty Images2. Magic Johnson
Five-time NBA champion Earvin “Magic” Johnson was on a salary of $14.6 million a year before he retired from the game in 1996. His net worth today, though, is $500 million – largely thanks to his company Magic Johnson Enterprises, which operates in the entertainment and promotional sectors.
Image: Michael Buckner/Getty Images for Tom FordEarlitha “Cookie” Kelly
Magic tied the knot with Earlitha “Cookie” Kelly in 1991, shortly before discovering that he was HIV positive – a potentially devastating development that hasn’t, it seems, compromised their marriage.
Image: Stephen Dunn/Allsport
Former Chicago Bulls superstar Michael Jordan is perhaps the finest basketball player to have ever graced the court. He earned $93 million in his playing days, but his current $1.1 billion fortune has been mainly amassed through endorsements, especially for Nike.
1. Michael Jordan
Former Chicago Bulls superstar Michael Jordan is perhaps the finest basketball player to have ever graced the court. He earned $93 million in his playing days, but his current $1.1 billion fortune has been mainly amassed through endorsements, especially for Nike.
Image: Isaac Brekken/Getty Images for Michael Jordan Celebrity Invitational
Jordan married his longtime sweetheart, Latin American model Yvette Prieto, in April 2013. The pair met on a night out in 2008, two years after Jordan divorced from first wife Juanita Vanoy.
Yvette Prieto
Jordan married his longtime sweetheart, Latin American model Yvette Prieto, in April 2013. The pair met on a night out in 2008, two years after Jordan divorced from first wife Juanita Vanoy.