LeBron James vs Michael Jordan: A Statistical Comparison

#7 Earnings

Michael Jordan topped the Forbes list of the 25 Highest-paid athletes of all time with career earnings of $1.85 billion (adjusted for inflation). While Jordan's long-term sponsorship deals with Gatorade, Hanes, Nike, and Upper Deck account for a large chunk of these earnings, the biggest chip in his block comes from the ownership of the Charlotte Hornets NBA franchise.

Jordan bought a minority stake in June 2006, and in 2010 he became the majority stakeholder and currently owns a 90% stake in the team, which was last valued at $780 million. The Jordan brand posted a revenue of $3.1 billion in 2017, from which Jordan got a cut of over $140 million.

LeBron James is no slouch himself, having landed himself at the 11th spot ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo in total career earnings. LeBron's major endorsers include Intel, Verizon, Nike, Coca-Cola, Beats by Dre and Kia Motors.

He is a shrewd businessman and owns a stake in 17 Blaze Pizzas, a 6-year-old brand which is reportedly growing at the fastest pacer eve among fast food businesses. LeBron also has one of the highest-paying current player contracts and is slated to earn $33.28 million this year. Nike's LeBron sneakers are their second-best performing sneaker brand after the Air Jordans.