How much do NBA All-Star players get paid?
The Vivint Arena is shown during the transformation taking place inside the arena before the start of the NBA basketball All-Star weekend Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023, in Salt Lake City. More than 60 players are making their way to Salt Lake City for All-Star weekend, some of them for the first time, one of them for the 19th time. And while some events will tout the league's future, many will be celebrating the past.(AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
(NEXSTAR) – For the first time in 30 years, some of the NBA’s best have descended onto Salt Lake City for the league’s All-Star weekend. Some will be leaving with a pretty decent paycheck, depending on how they play.
Players compete in a multitude of events during All-Star weekend, from the Rising Stars games for first- and second-year players on Friday; the dunk, 3-point, and skills competitions on All-Star Saturday; and the All-Star Game on Sunday.
While bragging rights may be on the line (Team LeBron has won every All-Star Game since the NBA divided teams based on votes instead of conference in 2018), so is prize money.
The prize payouts vary by event and what place the player finishes in.
For the Slam Dunk contest, players finishing third or fourth earn $20,000, according to the NBA’s collective bargaining agreement. Finishing second leads to a $50,000 bonus, while the winner – this year, Philadelphia 76ers guard Mac McClung – gets $100,000.
The winner of the 3-point competition – this year, it was Portland’s Damian Lillard – lands a $50,000 prize, with the runner-up earning $35,000. A third-place finish is worth $25,000, while those finishing in fourth, fifth, and sixth earn $10,000 each, according to the CBA. There’s no prize allotment listed for players finishing seventh and eighth, and the NBA didn’t immediately respond to Nexstar’s request regarding whether these players walk away empty-handed.
It also isn’t clear how much those participating in Rising Stars games or skills competition stand to earn.
The players that win Sunday’s All-Star Game — either Team LeBron or Team Giannis — will each take home $100,000 thanks to a reported increase of $50,000 in 2018, NBC Sports reports. However, players on the losing team will receive only the $25,000 listed in the CBA.
Some of these prize payouts are more than NFL Pro Bowl players earned earlier this month.
For the first time, the All-Star Draft will take place an hour before the All-Star Game tips off at 8:30 p.m. ET on TNT.