The Los Angeles Lakers underperformed on the basketball court this season, but LeBron James' bank account had its best year ever.

According to Sportico, the superstar hooper and mogul pulled in $126.9M in total earnings over the past 12 months — more than any other athlete on the planet. Lionel Messi came in second ($122M), followed by Christiano Ronaldo ($115M) and Neymar ($103M) in the $100+ million club. The next NBA players on the list are Stephen Curry ($86.2M, no. 6) and Kevin Durant ($85.9M, no. 7).

LeBron — who, at age 37 in his 19th season, averaged 30 points per game for the first time since 2007-08 — earned $36.9M in salary from the Lakers during the past calendar year. He tacked on a staggering $90 million in off-court money, including a slew of lucrative endorsements and investments.

LeBron's empire includes a billion-dollar Nike partnership, plus deals with Crypto.com, Rimowa, Walmart, GMC, AT&T, PepsiCo, and more. He holds equity stakes in Calm, Ladder/Openfit, Blaze Pizza, and, of course, Lobos 1707 tequila (which will face off against Michael Jordan and Jeanie Buss' Cincoro brand in the upcoming Tequila Finals.)

In 2011, LeBron reached a marketing deal with Fenway Sports Group, which has led to minority ownership stakes in Liverpool FC, the Boston Red Sox, and the Pittsburgh Penguins, among other entities.

The SpringHill Company, launched in 2015 by James and Maverick Carter, oversees operations of prolific production company SpringHill Entertainment (“Space Jam: A New Legacy”), the Uninterrupted platform, and Robot, a brand consultancy firm. In 2021, SpringHill sold off a minority stake to a consortium led by RedBird Capital, which included Nike, Epic Games, and Fenway Sports Group. Revenue for SpringHill is expected to eclipse $100 million in 2022, per Sportico, and the company has been valued at $725M.

LeBron crossed the pre-tax billionaire threshold in 2021.

James' earnings over the next 12 months should only increase. The four-time MVP is eligible to sign a two-year, $97.1M extension with the Lakers on Aug. 4, which will remain on the table until June 2023. Some folks around the league expect LeBron to play out the final season of his current deal ($44M) and go year-to-year from there.

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The Lakers hope that LeBron's personal enjoyment of living in Los Angeles buoyed by the fiscal benefits of being close to Hollywood will factor into his commitment to the franchise going forward.