Shohei Ohtani’s mega annual salary will be close to what Michael Jordan earned his entire NBA career
- Even after inflation, Michael Jordan’s most lucrative NBA contract falls short of Shohei Ohtani’s massive $700 million deal
- Jordan earneed $174,000 per day in 1997
- Ohtani will earn over $191,000 each day
Published on Dec 12, 2023 at 7:17 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Dec 13, 2023 at 3:29 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Adam Gray
While it’s difficult to believe, despite earning $174,000 everyday in 1997, Michael Jordan’s most lucrative NBA contract falls short of Shohei Ohtani’s massive $700 million deal – even after inflation.
Michael Jordan was a legend both on and off the court.
Six times NBA champion, he was the first athlete to become a billionaire.
In fact, his net worth due to smart entrepreneurial decisions after his NBA career means he’s now worth $3 billion.
Although, many athletes are keen to topple him from his position as world’s richest sports star.
We still love finding out what he’s up to – from real estate, to superyachts and his jaw-dropping car collection.
However, his salary pales in comparison to baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani’s recent massive contract.
It’s recently been revealed that Japanese-born Ohtani signed a huge 10-year $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The deal comes after he played six seasons with the Los Angeles Angels.
The two-way player’s contract is 64 percent bigger than the previous Major League Baseball record.
That unprecedented, 12-year, $426.5 million deal was made by Mike Trout back in 2019.
What’s more, Ohtani’s $70 million average salary is 62 percent higher than the previous best of $43.33 million, as per CNBC.
Ohtani’s new average salary nearly doubles the roughly $42.3 million he earned with the Angels.
These figures make what five-times-MVP, Michael Jordan, made from his biggest contract with the NBA seem like small fry.
While seemingly a benchmark for wealth in athletics, Jordan ‘only’ earned over $93 million in NBA salary over the course of his career.
Ohtani will earn close to that in his first year with his new team.
Out of the $91 million Michael Jackson amassed during his time with the Bulls, His Airness earned over $63 million during his last two seasons.
A one-year $30 million deal in 1996 was followed by another one-year $33.1 million contract in 1997 (his biggest).
His previous highest one-year salary seemed low at $4 million.
However, his $33.1 million contract in 1997 was far higher than payrolls of other NBA teams.
It remained the biggest contract in NBA history until 2018.
While inflation means these figures need to be adjusted slightly, $33.1 million from 1997 would be more than $63 million today.
To put that into context: Jordan earned around $174,000 per day in 1997.
Ohtani, meanwhile, will earn over $191,000 each day.
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All Supercar Blondie contributors undergo editorial review and fact-checking to ensure accuracy and authority in automotive journalism. After gaining her BA Hons in French and English at the University of Nottingham, Amelia embarked on a vocational diploma from the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ). This led to numerous opportunities, from interning at Vogue to being on the small team that launched Women’s Health magazine in the UK, which was named the PPA Consumer magazine of the year for three years running. As Health, Beauty and Fitness editor, Amelia personally received a Johnson & Johnson Award and was shortlisted for both PPA and BSME titles. Since then, Amelia has created content for numerous titles and brands, including the Telegraph, 111 Skin, Waitrose, Red magazine, Stylist, and Elle, as well as being Head of Content at Vitality and Editor in Chief at INLondon magazine. “My superpower is translating technical jargon about the mechanical workings of a supercar into a relatable story you’ll want to share with your friends after you’ve read it.” After joining the SB Media family as a senior journalist in September of 2023, Amelia’s role has evolved to see her heading up the SEO output of the editorial team. From researching the most ‘Google-able’ key terms to producing evergreen content - it’s been a time of hard work, growth, and success for the editorial team and the Supercar Blondie website. “I like to think of myself as a ‘method journalist’. In other words: I live and breathe whatever I am writing about. When writing about fitness, I trained as a personal trainer, and as a beauty editor, I completed an ‘expert’ in scent diploma with the Fragrance Foundation. “During my tenure at Supercar Blondie, however, I did something I never thought possible: I passed my driving test at the age of 36. One day I’d love to train as a mechanic to better understand what happens under the hood, too. “My sweet spot is providing readers with a ‘takeaway’ (read: something new they didn’t know before) after reading every one of my stories. While I don’t claim to be an expert in the automotive world, I know the experts and bodies in the field to rely on to provide our readers with an informative and thought-provoking story every time they visit the site.”
