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How much do basketball players make in europe
How Much Do Overseas Basketball Players Make?
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When it comes to a basketball league, we think of the NBA. This professional basketball tournament attracts the attention of spectators around the world thanks to its sublime matches.
It is every player’s dream to be here. Part of the reason is thanks to the salary and benefits for NBA players. However, overseas basketball leagues are also gradually proving their potential and more and more players are joining here.
How much do overseas basketball players make? Overseas basketball players can receive an average wage from zero to $4 million a year.
There are many factors that affect the salary and amount an overseas basketball player can receive. If you still want to learn more, continue reading this article by Scott Fujita.
Overseas basketball salaries
Contents
How Much Do Overseas Basketball Players Make A Year?
While the number of players specified for NBA teams is limited, playing basketball overseas is optimal for players to find opportunities for themselves. Each country has its own rules and ways of paying its professional basketball players.
Many countries in Europe pay average salaries between $60k and $500k per season for a player playing in the top tier. Some Asian countries like Korea or Japan are also willing to pay a similar amount from $120k to $400k a season.
View more: How much do NBA players make
China has the most generous payouts, ranging from $1 million to $3 million a season. The rest of the world pays more modest salaries, ranging from $2k to $20k.
Remember, these numbers are only valid when you enter a top professional basketball division.
Through our research, we have identified two main factors that influence the payment ability of players in overseas basketball leagues. These include:
The economic potential of the country.
The growth and popularity of basketball for that country.
To learn more about salaries at most overseas basketball leagues, check out this video.
Do Overseas Basketball Players Pay Taxes?
The good news for those who want to play basketball professionally overseas is that you won’t need to pay taxes on your earnings. It is the most apparent difference between the contract of an NBA player and an overseas player.
The basketball player’s team is the unit responsible for paying tax on that individual’s income. The salary you see on the contract is roughly what you can expect. Meanwhile, NBA players often have to spend half of their salary to pay related expenses and taxes.
Top 8 Highest Paying Overseas Basketball Leagues In 2021
The salary of a professional basketball player in different leagues will fluctuate significantly. Not only that, but the leagues also present an income gap between the average player and the highest-paid player. To learn more about league-specific salaries, follow the next section.
#1. Chinese Basketball Association
Chinese Basketball Association
The 2020-21 season marks the agreement on a new salary cap by the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). Basketball clubs at CBA can pay between 20-40 million yuan ($3-6.72 million) for Chinese players born in the country. Each team can have up to four foreign players and limit their salaries to no more than $7 million.
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Salary ranges are marked from A to E, with D being the maximum salary. Usually, overseas players will receive compensation of between 1 and 3 million dollars per year.
The season at the CBA also has a shorter playing time of just six months. Compared to the marathon race that lasts from 8 to 9 months in the European seasons, the competition conditions are good.
All of the above reasons have made CBA, apart from the NBA, one of the world’s most attractive overseas basketball leagues.
#2. EuroLeague
EuroLeague
The EuroLeague is the dream destination of any professional basketball player overseas thanks to its premium remuneration. The average European basketball salaries are pretty impressive, ranging from $500k – $800k per season. The best players can achieve a max salary of up to 4 million dollars per season.
FC Barcelona’s Nikola Mirotic leads the list of the highest-paid basketball players at the EuroLeague, receiving $4 million per year. Following him is Shane Larkin of Anadolu Efes, with $3.7 million per year.
Related: How much do NBA refs make
The sponsor for this sports tournament is Turkish Airlines EuroLeague. The tournament features 16 teams. They include Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Anadolu Efes, Olympiacos, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Valencia Basket, Baskonia, Zalgiris, Zenit Saint Petersburg, among others.
The EuroLeague schedule starts in October and ends in May every year.
#3. Spain Liga ACB
Liga ACB
Liga ACB is the premier professional basketball division of the Spanish basketball league system. It consists of 18 teams. The most prestigious tournament teams such as Real Madrid, Barcelona, or Kirolbet Baskonia also compete in the EuroLeague. They are also the teams that pay the best for basketball players.
The average salary that a basketball player can receive at ACB is from $250k to $500k per season. The highest-paid European basketball players are Walter Tavares and Sergio Llull. Each pocketed more than $2 million per season.
Many ACB teams have one or more NBA players on their roster.
#4. Turkish Basketball Super League
Basketball Super League
Turkey’s top professional men’s basketball league is the Turkish Basketball Super League (BSL). Top BSL contenders such as Fenerbahçe Beko and Anadolu Efes also competed in the EuroLeague.
Each BSL team can recruit up to eight overseas basketball players and use up to six players per match.
Salaries for foreign, non-Turkish players at BSL are typically between $250k and $450k per season. The highest-paid player is Anadolu Efes’ Shane Larkin, with a $2.6 million salary excluding taxes.
#5. Russian VTB United
VTB United
The VTB United is the leading national basketball league in Russia. They offer an excellent average salary between $200k and $450k per year. Depending on the player’s status, an overseas basketball player’s maximum pay is $4 million.
In fact, Europe’s highest-paid stars now mostly come from Russia. Alexey Shved, Nikola Milutinov, and Mike James all make $2.5 million per season.
It is worth noting that Alexey Shved played in the NBA for three years before returning to Russia. Brooklyn Nets currently hire Mike James as a free agent.
Given their stature and fame, we can easily see why the average Euro basketball salaries are so high.
#6. Germany Basketball Bundesliga
Basketball Bundesliga
The German Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) is another foreign league that pays players well. They have 18 teams with budgets as low as $10 million. Bayern Munich is the team with the most significant budget, $25 million.
Playing overseas at BBL will bring in an average salary of $100K to $350K per season. NBA first-round superstars like Greg Monroe can pocket around $1 million per season.
#7. Italian Lega Basket Serie A
Lega Basket Serie A
Basketball, surprisingly, is quite a popular sport in Italy. The Lega Basket Serie A (Serie A) is the biggest tournament with the participation of 17 teams. Each team offers an average salary ranging from $180K to $350K per year for an overseas basketball player.
For players with superstar status, he will be offered a higher salary. The highest-paid basketball player in Serie A is Sergio Rodriguez. He gets $2 million a year, the highest salary in the league.
#8. France LNB Pro A
LNB Pro A
Founded in 1921 with 18 teams, the LNB Pro A is still France’s most prestigious basketball tournament today. The defending champion ASVEL is also the most successful team in the game.
An overseas basketball player can earn an average salary at LNB between $80k and $200k per season. A.J Slaughter of ASVEL was the highest-paid basketball player of the 2019-20 season with $300k.
Many successful NBA players, such as Ian Mahinmi and Tony Parker, have emerged from the club over the past 15 seasons. This league is considered one of the financially safe places to play professional basketball abroad.
Final Thoughts
With an average NBA salary of $6.2 million per year, the NBA league is a mecca for professional basketball players. However, they can still find attractive opportunities at overseas teams as basketball becomes more and more popular. When receiving an attractive salary, they are also subject to many expectations and pressure from the team and the fans.
Whether you want to become the highest-paid NBA player or an overseas player, the prerequisite is that you have a stable form and continuous learning.
Thank you for reading!
Scott Fujita
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How much players in different leagues receive. Europrobasket study
The Europrobasket academy has released a comprehensive study on how much money foreigners earn in the top European championships. "Interception" carefully translated everything.
Important:
1) the amounts are in dollars, not in euros, as usual;
2) believe it or not, it's up to you, but the authors of the work say that in the process of preparation they talked with many agents, coaches and team members.
Average salary in Europe:
Spain. The strongest teams play in the ACB League, many Spanish clubs play in European competitions. Accordingly, there are the best salaries, and the budgets of Real Madrid and Barcelona exceed $40 million. On average, players in Spain make from 250 to 500 thousand per season, but there are exceptions: for example, Nikola Mirotic with his $ 4 million a year or Sergio Yull, Walter Tavares, Corey Higgins - they all earn about $ 2 million.
Turkey. Two teams from the Turkish championship play in the Euroleague, several more clubs in the Eurocup and the Champions League. The country has some of the highest salaries and almost half of the clubs have budgets in excess of $10 million. Leaders can get big money, for example: Shane Larkin - $ 3.7 million, Nando de Colo - 2.4 million, Jan Vesely - 2.2 million. At the same time, on average, foreigners earn 250-500 thousand in the league.
Russia. Some of the highest paid players in Europe play here. For example, Alexei Shved ($4 million last season, this amount may differ), Mike James and Nikola Milutinov (2.5 million each). But the average salary in the United League is about 200-450 thousand dollars per year.
Italy. Few people expected this country to be so high in the ranking, but elite basketball players also play in the Italian championship. For example, Milan defender Sergio Rodriguez, who receives about $ 2 million, is the highest paid player this season. On average, the salaries of foreigners in Serie A range from 180 to 350 thousand dollars.
Germany. The German economy is the fourth largest in the world, so it's not surprising to see the Bundesliga in this ranking. Four championship teams at once have more than $10 million for the season, and the budget of one of them, Bayern, is as much as $25 million. 1 million
Greece. The economic crisis has played a role in the amounts that foreigners earn in this country. But the Greek league is played by top basketball players, and three teams have budgets over $10 million (including Olympiakos, which plays in the second division). The average salary here is from 150 to 250 thousand, although Nick Calathes received 2.25 million in Pao last season, and Kostas Sloukas is now in Olya - 1.8 million.
Israel. Teams from here do not shine in Europe, and the money here is much lower. The exception is Maccabi, whose budget is $26.5 million, and point guard Scotty Wilbekin earns $1.7 million. But this is not the norm, but the norm - from 80 to 250 thousand dollars.
France. Only two teams from here have a budget of more than $10 million, but this is one of the most reliable countries in terms of payments - contracts are guaranteed by the French government. Interestingly, only 30% of clubs' budgets go towards paying players, while in the rest of Europe these expenses account for more than half of club budgets. On average, foreigners here earn from 80 to 200 thousand dollars a season. Two years ago, the highest paid ASVEL player was AJ Slaughter with a salary of 300 thousand.
Average salaries in Asia:
China. The CBA is considered one of the richest leagues in the world, and most importantly, it is watched by more than 500 million people. This means that you can just come, play and build a business.
Stephon Marbury did just that: he earned $12 million in six years with the Beijing Ducks and became such a star that a statue of him was erected in front of the former team's arena. He went into coaching before starting his own company and selling basketball shoes to kids who can't afford branded shoes. Bliss? Bliss. Legend and forever secured.
The average salary of a foreigner in the Chinese championship is from 1 to 3 million dollars. That is, 4-6 times higher than in the most wasteful country in Europe - Spain. Tracy McGrady, Gilbert Arenas, Steve Francis, Ron Artest received so much in China. But there are exceptions, for example, Lance Stevenson, who is paid 4 million by the Liaoning Flying Leopards. .
The difficulty is that teams are allowed to have only two foreign players. But there are 19 clubs in the CBA, so they're really spending a lot.
South Korea. The rules of the local championship provide for a limit on foreign players - there can be no more than two of them in each team. If there are two foreigners in the club, then the ceiling of their total salary is set at the level of 700 thousand dollars, and if there is one, then by 500 thousand. On average, a legionnaire in KBL receives 250-400 thousand dollars, which puts the Korean championship on the same level with Spain, Turkey and Russia in this indicator.
But this is official information. A whole scattering of Europrobasket sources indicates that, together with bonuses, salaries here can reach up to 800 thousand dollars, which means that only China pays more.
However, remember that if you want to play in Korea, then get ready for 3-4 practices a day.
Japan. In 2016, two leagues were united here, and now the championship is flourishing. First of all, this concerns salaries: the local players in the season before last received an average of 147 thousand dollars, the players of the Japanese national team - about 417 thousand. Today, the highest paid Japanese - Yuki Togashi - earns $ 1 million.
Legionnaires in Japan receive an average of 120 to 300 thousand dollars. Life in this country is expensive, but teams tend to take care of all the expenses of their basketball players.
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Salary: how much does a basketball player earn? | 1xmatch
Contents
NBA and the rest of the world
Very comfortable salaries in the Euroleague
France catches up in the top division
A professional basketball player is a dream job for many people. I must say that sport is primarily a passion and entertainment. Who didn't dream of becoming a professional athlete as a child? Probably not many people.
Financially, professional basketball players make good money. From 2,000 to 4,000,000 euros per month, depending on the championship. As with most professions, not everyone is in the same boat. The best earn much more money than the worst. This is logical, even if there are special cases. Employers, namely clubs, always do good and bad things. That is, players are underpaid based on their performance and impact on the field. Conversely, others are less productive than expected given their wages.
As you have already understood, playing basketball at a professional level is quite profitable. However, a professional basketball career is relatively short. On average, it lasts about ten seasons. An injury or other health problem can ruin an athlete's career. Professional basketball players must save and invest if they no longer want to work after announcing their retirement from the sport. It all depends on the expenses they have incurred and the financial rewards they have accumulated over the years.
The NBA and the rest of the world
The study ranked between them the most profitable championships on a global scale. At the top of the list, of course, we find the NBA. The North American Basketball Championship pays its athletes the best. Throughout the season, the minimum salary of an NBA basketball player is equivalent to the salary of an excellent Euroleague player. Therefore, the NBA attracts the best basketball players in the world. Superstars are paid tens of millions of euros every year. However, they are all sponsored by some of the most famous manufacturers of sports equipment: Nike, Adidas, Under Armor and Puma. Thus, with an equal salary, a basketball player will prefer the NBA to any other championship.
Very comfortable salaries in the Euroleague
The Euroleague is the second best basketball competition in the world. Every year it brings together the eighteen best teams in Europe. Including Barcelona, Real Madrid, Milan and Monaco. Many players who have gone through the NBA evolve there. Not all Euroleague teams have the same budgets. The financial impact force differs depending on the teams. Of course, the best basketball players prefer to join the club that will offer them the highest salary. In 2022 ten the highest paid Euroleague basketball players earn from 1 to 5 million euros per year.
France catch up in the top flight
The French top flight has long struggled to attract strong talent. With a significant increase in the budgets of the LDLC ASVEL and Monaco locomotives, as well as the rise of Paris to the elite, this era is over. French teams can compete sportively and financially with Euroleague formations. At ASM, American Mike James will earn a seven-figure salary between 2021 and 2022. The absolute record of the championship of France.
In the lower divisions financial abundance is far away. Pro B clubs offer comfortable but not enough rewards to then hope to live without a job after 40 years. The average salary is estimated at about 4 euros per month. In general, substitute players receive two to three times less than those who show the best results.