Few, if any, professional sporting leagues have more marketable stars than the NBA. Basketball has gone global, and stars are cashing in on the sport's expansion. Nike, for example, sells twice as many of Kobe Bryant's shoes in China than in the United States.
Forbes recently put out its list of the top-earning NBA stars, and it's got all of the usual suspects. But a few players from last year's list (Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett) have been replaced.
Here's who made the cut. (It's another LeBron-Kobe showdown.)
Forbes' Top-Earning NBA Players Slideshow
10. Pau Gasol, $21.5 million
Salary: $19 million Endorsements: $2.5 million Last year's ranking: N/A Gasol, who has deals with Nike, Banco Popular and EA Sports, is the only European player on this list.
9. Chris Paul, $24.8 million
Salary: $17.8 million Endorsements: $7 million Last year's ranking: 10 According to Forbes, moving to Los Angeles has boosted Paul's image. He has signed with State Farm, Nike and Powerade.
8. Dwight Howard, $26.5 million
Salary: $19.5 million Endorsements: $7 million Last year's ranking: 3 Howard's endorsement potential was hurt by his unceremonious departure from Orlando.
7. Amar'e Stoudamire, $27.9 million
Salary: $19.9 million Endorsements: $8 million Last year's ranking: 6 Stoudamire cashed in both on and off the court after his move to New York.
6. Carmelo Anthony, $28.4 million
Salary: $19.4 million Endorsements: $9 million Last year's ranking: 5 Anthony's deals with Nike and Boost Mobile rank him among the highest earning athletes in the Big Apple.
5. Kevin Durant, $29.7 million
Salary: $16.7 million Endorsements: $13 million Last year's ranking: 8 Despite playing in a small market, Durant has a huge deal with Nike and recently starred in his own movie, "Thunderstruck."
4. Dwyane Wade, $30.2 million
Salary: $17.2 million Endorsements: $13 million Last year's ranking: 4 Wade became the highest profile player to sign with a Chinese sneaker company when he left Nike for Li-Ning.
3. Derrick Rose $32.4 million
Salary: $16.4 million Endorsements: $16 million Last year's ranking: N/A Rose's new contract extension and "lifetime" deal with Adidas have rocketed him from unranked to No. 3.
2. LeBron James, $57.6 million
Salary: $17.6 million Endorsements: $40 million Last year's ranking: 2 James' hardware collection got a serious boost last year when he added two MVP trophies (regular season and Finals) as well as an Olympic gold medal and a Finals ring. He makes more money in endorsements than any other NBAer, and his profitability is still on the rise.
1. Kobe Bryant, $59.8 million
Salary: $27.8 million Endorsements: $32 million Last year's ranking: 1 At least something is going right for the Lakers' superstar. His longevity (17 years in the league ) and loyalty (he has been with Los Angeles his entire career) have allowed him to sign the highest-paying contract in the league.
