He achieved billionaire status in early June 2022 with a fortune of $1 billion, when Forbes published an article titled “LeBron James is Officially a Billionaire” while still playing basketball. This is something no NBA player has achieved before. Another basketball billionaire, Michael Jordan, achieved this title more than a decade after he retired (in 2014).
“Being a billionaire and spending a lot of money seem to go hand in hand. But LeBron James – one of the highest-paid NBA players of all time – is determined to prove that wrong,” commented LuxuryLaunches’ writer.
Can spend money on things you like
Basketball star and billionaire King James lives in a large mansion worth 36.8 million USD (equivalent to 885.3 billion VND) in Beverly Hills (California, USA), which has a theater, tennis court, 7 fireplaces. LeBron James also has a hobby of expensive cars and branded fashion.
LeBron James’ garage is home to cars from brands like Lamborghini, Ferrari 599, Mercedes Maybach 57S… In his closet, King James keeps watches from luxury manufacturers like Richard Mille, Rolex, Audemars Piguet and Patek Philippe.
Billionaire LeBron James owns many watches from luxury brands. Photo: Highsnobiety, Wrist Enthusiast, GQ Germany.
But resolutely save on 3 things
However, the 39-year-old athlete can be surprisingly frugal with his money. Former basketball player Dwyane Wade even called LeBron James “the most frugal man in the NBA”.
Mobile network
The American player refuses to use mobile data and only connects to the Internet when there is WiFi. Dwyane Wade said that LeBron James would say “No” to using mobile data.
Or basketball player Kevin Love once shared that when he was in Toronto (Canada), on the way from the airport to the hotel, he did not go online at all because he had no mobile data. “He was always waiting for WiFi signal.”
Sharing with GQ magazine in 2014, LeBron James has long kept the goal of becoming a billionaire and this is his biggest milestone. Photo: Time.
Premium plans block ads
Many people find it annoying when they are enjoying music or movies but are interrupted by ads. Therefore, to have a better experience, they often choose to buy a high-priced service package but have the feature to turn off/skip ads.
In a 2017 interview with ESPN’s Rachel Nichols, Wade revealed that LeBron James doesn’t buy apps on his mobile device. He also doesn’t pay for Pandora’s ad-free music streaming service, despite the experience being constantly interrupted.
Upon hearing this, Pandora offered him a free Premium account. Of course, LeBron James did not refuse the gift.
“He is knowledgeable and smart about financial matters. To me, it is amazing how mature he is,” billionaire Warren Buffett, famous for his thrift, once shared about LeBron James.
Over the years, the friendship between billionaire Warren Buffett and basketball star LeBron James has blossomed. Photo: CNBC.
Twitter blue tick verification fee
When billionaire Elon Musk took over Twitter, he didn’t shy away from ideas for improving the microblogging platform. One of them was requiring verified accounts (with a blue tick) to pay $8 a month to own the coveted blue tick.
While many celebrities don’t mind paying a monthly fee, LeBron has been blunt about the fact that it’s not for him.
However, if you check King James’ personal page, fans can see that at the present time, he still has a blue tick.
The Verge confirmed in April that a Twitter employee had emailed LeBron James to “renew a free Twitter Blue subscription for @kingjames on behalf of Elon Musk.” The site also reported that James’ longtime communications advisor, Adam Mendelsohn, confirmed that the player had not paid for the blue tick.
After The Verge published this information, Elon Musk also said that he was the one who paid for LeBron James’ blue tick with the hidden status line: “I am paying for some individuals”. About an hour later, billionaire Elon Musk bluntly stated that King James was one of these individuals.
