Even though more people are familiar with football than basketball, its players are likely still “below” the stars of the National Basketball Association (NBA) in terms of income and freedom. This is because football is more popular than basketball. At the professional level, the game of basketball is played. This is evidenced by the fact that Russell Westbrook, who is only a mid-range player, is able to purchase a property that costs tens of millions of dollars despite the fact that he is able to afford it.

Obviously, the only meaningful comparisons are relative ones. But if we look at the two events that bring in the most money for each sport, we can see that basketball brings in more money than football does. The National Basketball Association has a higher overall revenue than the Premier League does. The National Basketball Association brought in 9.1 billion USD for the 2018–19 season, while the Premier League only brought in 6 billion EUR. This number continues to rise with each passing season. The impact of COVID-19 was mostly responsible for the 10% drop in NBA revenue that occurred during the most recent season. However, their overall revenue is still more by two billion US dollars than that of the Premier League. It might be claimed that football still has to “inhale smoke” for a long time compared to NBA basketball.

A person in the NBA earns, on average, seven million United States dollars per year, which can be computed based on the compensation that they receive each year as a player. Only 300,000 people participate in the Premier League’s version of the same event. Of all, the roster for a basketball club typically only consists of 15 individuals, whereas the roster for a soccer club typically consists of 25-30 people. However, even if the average wage of a Premier League player was multiplied by two or three, it would still be far lower than that of an NBA player.

Having a lot of money allows basketball players to live comfortably, even when they are not stars

In the world of football, if an A-list star like Neymar, Messi, Ronaldo… can only pocket 30-35 million USD/year from bonuses at most, this is only the salary of an average player in the world. NBA. In the list of the 10 highest paid NBA players in the 2021/22 season, no one received less than 43 million USD. Big NBA players like LeBron James, Nikola Jokic or Stephen Curry… often pocket from 45 million USD/year, divided on an average weekly basis of 830,000 USD/person, while the person receiving the highest salary in the Premier League is Ronaldo or De Gea, can only pocket $470,000/week.

Not to mention NBA basketball players have a pension fund, allowing them to live comfortably even if they are not rich when they retire (each person pockets $200,000/year in pension). But football does not have this privilege. All show the wealth and richness of the land of basketball, a sport that is not number 1 in most countries around the world.

That allows basketball players to spend freely. Typically Russell Westbrook, a fallen star of the Los Angeles Lakers. Last week, he sold his $30 million house in California to prepare to move to a new place. The figure of 30 million USD to own a house is probably rare for a football player or any sports star. But with Westbrook and basketball, they are used to it. In 2017, Westbrook signed one of the largest contracts in NBA history, worth a total of $205 million over 5 years.

Surrounding the house is a garden and a thick security fence

And “money-burning” hobbies

That means Westbrook earns an average of more than 40 million USD/year from competition, not including his own commercial and advertising royalties. Westbrook signed one of the largest contracts in Jordan Brand shoe history when he renewed in 2017. In addition, he is also associated with leading brands such as PepsiCo, True Religion and Samsung. His income from outside is about 35 million USD. As of September 2022, Russell Westbrook’s net worth is $250 million.

This number allows him to shop freely, which his home savings of tens of millions of dollars is proof of. This is a house located in the Brentwood area, Los Angeles, which has extremely strict security, with dozens of Hollywood stars around. Set on more than 10,000 square feet, the six-bedroom home was built in 2018. It has a gym, cinema, fully stocked bar and wine room. The price Westbook bought 4 years ago was 20 million USD and after many years of use, he wants to earn half that amount. Partly because real estate prices have increased over time, partly because of the brand of an NBA star, but it cannot be denied that Westbrook spent a lot of money to redecorate the house.

Westbrook’s house is full of the most luxurious amenities

These include dozens of French doors, luxury hardwood floors, custom moldings and imported marble slabs in the kitchen. The house has an underground floor that includes a living room, bar, bedroom and a “super luxury cinema”. This basement is used in case the mansion’s security is threatened.

With a huge area, the house is also equipped with a football field (American style) for children. Mini golf course, 2 swimming pools used by the homeowner seasonally, entertainment room, separate play area for children and a variety of other amenities. That’s why it costs up to 30 million USD, ten times more than the usual houses of football stars.

This is just one of many super luxury real estate properties that Westbrook and other basketball stars own. In addition, he also has a house in Washington DC, where he used to play for the Washington Wizards. Or we can mention a few apartments in Los Angeles shared by Westbrook on real estate websites. Maybe these are just apartments he sells and does not own long-term.

Westbrook’s favorite Lamborghini Huracán

Besides a large amount of real estate, Westbrook also spends freely on car hobbies. He owns a series of expensive cars from top brands such as Lamborghini, Mercedes, Porche, Ferrari… But people often see this 34-year-old player driving out on the road in a Lamborghini Huracan. This car is equipped with a 5.2L V10 engine with a capacity of 640 horsepower. Comes with a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission and full-time 4-wheel drive system. It can accelerate from 0-100km/h in 3.4 seconds. The selling price of the standard Huracan version is about 370,000 USD.

 

With everything he owns, you can see how wealthy Westbrook is. As of September 2022, his net worth is $250 million, perhaps only less than Ronaldo and Messi if you look at the world of football. But you should know, Westbrook is just an expired star of the NBA, “only” receiving the 11th highest salary in the league and above him there are countless other rich stars whose wealth we will “experience” That’s in the following articles.