said by The Dv8or :

There's plenty of Wall Street phenoms pulling down 9 figure paychecks that no one talks about, not to mention the CEOs who get shitloads of stock options.

said by Tex Longhorn :

I think I heard something about this in the last year.

said by dogma :

Moreover, Americans personal income has been falling as well, however it seems professional athlete/entertainer incomes are increasing.

said by The Dv8or :

One may say that they don't buy products or services based on commercials and endorsers, but there's a very advanced psychology in advertising, and the subliminal messages being passed have a lot larger effect than a person realizes. Name recognition is major, and with an aggressive ad campaign, the company is basically building a visual and mental relationship with you.

said by zxt :

I can't believe Shaq and Garnett beat Kobe on total earnings.

said by dogma :

The marquee professional sports products [NFL/MLB/NBA/NASCAR] look to be recession resistant.

said by The Dv8or :

SO SO SO not the case! The NFL laid off a number of front office staff. Tom Hicks' fortune is in the shitter, and he needs to sell off the Rangers. There's the other examples I gave earlier. NASCAR has lost major sponsorship deals, and with GM in the shitter, they're looking to make a deal with a foreign engine maker. The Detroit Tigers lost their 2nd largest sponsor. And thats just off the top of my head.

said by The Dv8or :

The impact will be less on the NBA, NHL, and NFL than the MLB because of the salary caps in place, but there will be an effect.

said by The Dv8or :

Looking at the list posted here, there's an adding error for Shaq. Either way, I can believe that Shaq would earn more because he's a much more marketable commodity than Kobe ever was, pre or post-rape.

said by zaldy :

I can't see why Shaq is more marketable than Kobe. Kobe has his own shoe right? Does shaq has his? It's an honest question.

said by The Dv8or :

If you cant understand why Shaq is twelve times more marketable than Kobe, then you're clearly blinding yourself to Shaq's charisma. And by the way, Shaq had his own shoe years before Kobe had one. As a matter of fact, Reebok was trying to market a Shaq logo to replace the Air Jordan logo when Jordan retired. You clearly are a young child, seeing how you dont remember these things.

said by The Dv8or :

If you cant understand why Shaq is twelve times more marketable than Kobe, then you're clearly blinding yourself to Shaq's charisma.

said by The Dv8or :

If you cant understand why Shaq is twelve times more marketable than Kobe, then you're clearly blinding yourself to Shaq's charisma. And by the way, Shaq had his own shoe years before Kobe had one. As a matter of fact, Reebok was trying to market a Shaq logo to replace the Air Jordan logo when Jordan retired. You clearly are a young child, seeing how you dont remember these things.

said by zaldy :

Also how can a (Shaq) Reebok logo replaced a (Jordan) Nike logo?

said by The Dv8or :

Because Reebok was trying to push a logo that would hopefully be the most recognizable logo associated with a specific player. Everyone knew the Jordan logo, and Reebok wanted to counter.

As for how Forbes crunched these numbers, and why they're so drastically different from SI's numbers, I couldnt answer that until I see who used what formula.

said by zaldy :

I guess then Shaq wasn't that marketable at all. I've asked a few co workers who likes to watch NBA too to name a few NBA players they know that has his own shoe. Jordan was the first answer most of the time. Kobe's name was mentioned 4 out of 5. Shaq was never mentioned.

I therefore conclude more people knew Kobe's line of shoe than Shaq's. So maybe Kobe is more marketable then?

said by Chillin :

Imagine if he hadn't raped a white chick. He'd have more endorsements.

said by 57721182 :

None of us are perfect, and I believe Kobe is a great basketball player, dad, and husband.

said by The Dv8or :

Yeah, I hear screwing the help in Colorado resorts is the model dad/husband behavior.

said by Mats :



I just prefer to like athletes who dont act like douches.

said by ariesguy :

Curious.. Who are the non-douches?

said by fatness :

Roberto Clemente
Warrick Dunn

said by Chillin :

Imagine if he hadn't raped a white chick. He'd have more endorsements.

said by dogma :

Are our individual lives so pathetic, that the only way we find our personal self-pride, self-dignity and self-esteem is by living vicariously through our gladiators?

said by zaldy :

I don't remember seeing Iverson played the just concluded NBA season and yet he's up there...earning more (salary) than Kobe.

said by P Ness :

golf has it 100% right

your earnings/salary is based purely on your PERFORMANCE.

tiger can go into a duval like slump and make 42k a year if he plays badly.

and the endorsements are a reflections of how well he does and can generate money

to pay someone 33 million a year even if he bats 232 and hits 1 homer run is retarded.....if he does this poorly his salary should be down to 3 dollars

that is one of the reasons why people get upset at baseball and not golf earnings