Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant Cross $1B Mark in Career Earnings, Join LeBron James

LeBron James is no longer the only active NBA player with $1 billion in career earnings.

Per Sportico's Kurt Badenhausen, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant have achieved billionaire status between their career on-court earnings and endorsement deals.

James, Curry and Durant are also the only three NBA players making at least $100 million during the 2025-26 season between their salaries and endorsement earnings.

Giannis Antetokounmpo is close to being in the nine-figure club with $99.1 million in earnings this season.

James is the highest-paid player in the NBA this season with a combined $132.6 million between his salary from the Los Angeles Lakers ($52.6 million) and endorsements ($80 million).

Curry and Durant are both making $80 million in endorsements for the 2025-26 season.

In terms of on-court earnings, James and Durant are the only two players in NBA history with more than $500 million in their career. Durant passed the threshold this season thanks to his $53.3 million salary from the Houston Rockets.

Curry ranks third on the list with $470.1 million in earnings from the Golden State Warriors. He will cross the half-billion mark in 2026-27 with a $62.6 million salary.

Badenhausen did note that Curry has the highest salary in the NBA for the ninth consecutive season. He has been able to maintain that mark by virtue of remaining with the Warriors, allowing him to extend off his past supermax deals signed in 2017 and 2021.

James and Durant haven't been able to consistently stay at supermax levels because they have changed teams multiple times throughout their careers.

Durant's two-year, $90 million extension with the Rockets signed in October was for $30 million less than the max. It marked the first time since 2018 with the Golden State Warriors he didn't sign a max contract.

Based on their current contracts, Durant is set to surpass James in total career earnings in the final season of his deal with the Rockets.

According to Badenhausen, nine athletes have achieved billionaire status during their careers. The non-NBA players on the list include Tiger Woods, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Roger Federer, Phil Mickelson and Floyd Mayweather.

Michael Jordan is not in that group because he didn't make it into the billionaire club until 2015, 12 years after his playing career ended.