As the news recently broke that LeBron James is the highest paid NBA player of all time, a new study reveals just how much cash he can make from a single Instagram post and its mega bucks!
Sports data experts at Jeffbet found the 20 highest earners overall by analyzing the top 100 most followed players from the NBA and used the Influencer Hub Instagram Influencer Earnings Calculator to interpret which player would make the most money from a sponsored post. The tool assesses the number of followers and engagement rate for each account in order to estimate the potential earnings.
With a huge 129M followers, LeBron James takes the top spot, with the potential to earn up to $427,684 from one sponsored post.
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Golden State Warriors star, Stephen Curry, comes in second place with $148,434, while another Laker’s player, Russell Westbrook, takes home the bronze medal with $66,986 per sponsored post.
Brooklyn Nets pro, Kyrie Irving doesn’t have quite as many followers (17M), meaning he’d earn around $10,500 less than Westbrook for each sponsored post.
Further down the list, Anthony Davis would earn around 18 times less than teammate LeBron James, however with $23,670 for a single Instagram snap, we’re sure he’s not complaining.
When it comes to teams overall, the Los Angeles Lakers have the highest earning players, with four stars making the top 20 list. Lonzo Ball takes the lead for the Chicago Bulls, while James Harden is shooting the online hoops for the 76ers.
In comparison to other influencers, some of these NBA players are giving them a run for their money. Kendall Jenner, who has 250M followers has the potential to earn $829,705 per sponsored post, however soccer star, Cristiano Ronaldo, who is officially the most followed person globally could earn up to $2M.
A spokesperson from Jeffbet said: “With the NBA season starting in October, players are now taking some much-deserved down time, with many sharing more content on Instagram right now. “After analysing the accounts of the most followed players, it’s incredible to see how much these stars could be earning off the court. They have millions of loyal fans who actively engage with them on social media, making their content extremely valuable.”
Check out the full list below!
