Athletes from eight sports made the top 25, and their cumulative earnings are $25.5 billion according to Sportico.
Who would have thunk that a young Michael Jordan from 1984 would decades later become the richest athlete to ever grace sports decades later? The NBA at the time was the showcase of stars with Magic Johnson, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and Larry Bird. The high flying Jordan would become a signature star after amazing feats in Slam Dunk contest and scoring high numbers in games against the likes of Larry Bird and Boston Celtics.
He would soon takeover the league as its top star as the likes of Bird, Johnson, and Isiah Thomas became aged players. Jordan would dominate after being able to over the obstacles of the Detroit Pistons, Boston Celtics, and Los Angeles Lakers. The Chicago Bulls icon would eventually retire during the mid 90’s despite being in his prime.
This did not sit well with some of his teammates as recently revealed by Scottie Pippen.
Says the guy who literally Waited on purpose to get surgery done in the middle of the season and quit on his team (in a playoff game btw when the series was tied) because Phil didn’t make a play for him so bad at the point HIS TEAM said this about him pic.twitter.com/Zp8i40B1H6
— Getnobuckets (@Getnobuckets2) November 4, 2021
It should be illegal to have a GOAT debate. It’s not even a convo. This is a 12 year run that will never be replicated again. Michael Jordan is the greatest ever. pic.twitter.com/o1aLg7GROv
— Ball Don't Stop (@balldontstop) November 3, 2021
Scottie Pippen says Michael Jordan put out “The Last Dance” because he didn’t want younger fans calling LeBron the GOAT, but this latest development of Jordan still leading the pack of athletes as the greatest of all-time for financial status shows how much of an impact Jordan had during his run and afterwards. His basketball shoe deal with Nike for his Air Jordan brand became a monster in sales that was a fashion statement in the 80’s and 90’s that have extended to this day.
Scottie Pippen’s problem distilled down to one sentence. pic.twitter.com/ig9TZ1yPAf
— holdTHElettuce (@hold_th) November 2, 2021
According to Sports Illustrated article, Pippen felt disrespected by the Bulls organization after retiring from the league. He even mentioned in detail that while Jordan earned $10 million dollars from The Last Dance, his teammates “didn’t earn a dime.”
Scottie Pippen’s Unguarded is scheduled for a November 9th release.
Looks like Michael Jordan makes more in a minute than I do in an hour 😳😂 https://t.co/SGadySfqRe
— Antonio Mango (@AntonioMango4) November 4, 2021
The list of top paid athletes includes only one female, Serena Williams, at $480 million, just inside the top 40. Based on career earnings adjusted for inflation, Jordan and Tiger Woods are the only two athletes to earn at least $2 billion.
Jordan leads the way with $2.62 billion thanks largely to the $1 billion in royalties Nike has paid him since he retired in 2003, while Woods has earned $2.1 billion, also benefiting from a longtime Nike partnership.
