Could LeBron James take the biggest pay cut in NBA history?

The NBA’s GOAT, according to us, LeBron James, owns a multitude of NBA records, including most points scored in a single career, most 1st Team All-NBAs, most All-Star appearances, most consecutive games scoring double-digit points, most 20-(and 30-)point games in league history, most all-time playoff wins, and many more.

Well, this summer, he could very well set another NBA record, that of the biggest pay cut in league history.

This season, James is making $52.63 million, to add to his total guaranteed earnings of $583,949,426, which makes him the highest-paid player in NBA history.

But if the rumors are true and James does leave the Los Angeles Lakers this summer to head home and join the Cleveland Cavaliers for the third time in his career, the pay cut James will likely have to take will be a monstrous one. Because barring a shocking, unexpected Donovan Mitchell or Evan Mobley trade, the Cavs will be hampered by the tax apron, which would leave them with just the veteran minimum to offer James.

That would give James a salary of $3.9 million for 2026-27, approximately $48.73 million less than he made in his final season with the Lakers. That would be the biggest such reduction in league history.

As of now, the biggest pay cut in NBA history belongs to Russell Westbrook, who went from earning $47.1 million in 2022-23 to making $3.8 million in 2023-24.

Trailing Westbrook is Blake Griffin, who earned $32.4 million in 2021-22 and took an enormous pay cut in 2022-23, when he earned $2.9 million.

Klay Thompson is another NBA legend to take a massive pay cut, going from earning $32.4 million in 2023-24 to $15.9 million in 2024-25. And rounding out the Top 5 biggest pay cuts in NBA history, before a potential James pay cut, is a former teammate of his, Kevin Love, who took a huge pay cut from 2022-23 to 2023-24, going from making $30.6 million to $3.8 milion in those respective seasons.

Of course, this entire discussion may be for naught, as the Lakers, who are reportedly open to bringing James back, do own his Bird Rights and could offer him the max – $58.1 million – for 2026-27. That doesn’t seem all that likely to happen, though, at least not at that price tag.

If James’ next contract is worth roughly $9 million in 2026-27, he’d still break the record for the biggest pay cut in NBA history. If his next deal is worth $20 million for next season, it’d still be the second biggest pay cut the NBA has ever seen.

So, beyond the usual will he? Won’t he? Discussion about James’ potential retirement, we’re almost as curious about what his next contract will look like, as NBA history is very possible to be made in that regard.

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This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Could LeBron James take the biggest pay cut in NBA history?

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