HOW MUCH DO OVERSEAS BASKETBALL PLAYERS MAKE?
In overseas basketball there is no universal player salary cap system so overseas basketball salaries can range from US$100.00 – $1,000.00/per month (lower – levels) to $2 – $4 million/per year depending on the league.
Top-Tier Asian (CBA) and European (ACB) overseas leagues pay the most.
I know:
That is a massive range in overseas basketball wages.
But that is how it works in overseas basketball.
Here’s how I’d put the pay system in tiers:
Unlike the NBA, FIBA – who is the international governing body of international basketball leagues – does not require overseas teams to publicly share:
- Player wages
- Player reward systems (bonuses/incentives)
- Player contracts
- Length of contracts
More importantly though:
FIBA does not require a universal salary cap system for overseas leagues.
That’s how someone like Nikola Mirotic can earn US$5.4 million with FC Barcelona in Spain’s ACB league.
Meanwhile another player – say me, for instance – can earn as little as $700.00/per month in a FIBA league starting out.
Yet we are both considered overseas basketball players.
We are both on the scale of overseas basketball salaries.
AVERAGE OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARY
Players may be shocked to learn that worldwide, the average overseas basketball salary will land somewhere between US$700 – $2,000/per month.
Rarely do players reach six figures contracts in overseas basketball.
That’s the harsh reality whether players want to accept it or not.
Usually, people will see the NBA’s glamorous lifestyle and expect the same in overseas basketball.
But that couldn’t be further from the truth for the vast majority of players.
Overseas basketball salaries are typically very low for beginning/rookie basketball players.
That being said there are still thousands of players comfortably living off overseas basketball wages across the world.
How do we know all this?
We did the largest scale study ever on overseas basketball salaries ever performed.
So let’s dive what we found out and where you might fit in overseas basketball today!
HIGHEST PAYING OVERSEAS BASKETBALL LEAGUES [CHART]
| Highest paying overseas basketball leagues (2022) | ||
| Country (League) | Most reported salary (US$) | MAX. Salary (US$) |
| 1. China (CBA) | $1 mil – $3 Mill/yr | $4.4 mil/yr |
| 2. Europe (EuroLeague) | $500k – $800k/yr | $5.4 mil/yr |
| 3. Spain (ACB) | $250k – $500k/yr | $5.4 mil/yr |
| 4. Turkey (BSL) | $250k – $475k/yr | $4 mil/yr |
| 5. Russia (VTB United) | $200k – $450k/yr | $4 mil/yr |
| 6. Italy (Serie A) | $150k – $350k/yr | $2.25 mil/yr |
| 7. Israel (Premier League) | $140 – $350k/yr | $1.5 mil/yr |
| 8. Germany (BBL) | $100k – $300k/yr | $1 mil/yr |
| 9. Greece (A1) | $60k – $250k/yr | $2.25 mil/yr |
| 10. Japan (B1 League) | $150k – $275k/yr | $1 mil/yr |
| 11. Australia (NBL) | $120k – $250k | $500k/yr |
| Chart created by: Josecolorado.com (2022) |
The highest-paying overseas basketball league remains the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) as foreigners (former NBA players) regularly clear the US$1 Million mark here.
The EuroLeague, ACB (Spain), BSL (Turkey) and VTB United (Russia) are next.
8/11 of the top-paying overseas basketball leagues are based in Europe.
Two belong to Asia (China, Japan) and one is in the Oceania (Australia).
So how do the highest-paying overseas basketball leagues break down?
Let’s check a few out next:
CHINESE BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION (CBA) SALARY
The Chinese Basketball Association’s (CBA) overseas basketball salaries remain in a class of its own as multiple clubs are able to offer $1 – $4 million/per year contracts.
That last part is key:
Multiple teams in the CBA are capable of shelling out millions to its top-level players (foreigners).
No other overseas basketball league in the world can claim that.
Not Spain, Turkey – nobody.
Former NBA players regularly play in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) due to its high basketball wages.
Unsurprisingly then:
That’s why NBA fans have seen their favorite aging stars such as Stephon Marbury, Tracy Mcgrady and many more head over to China for the cash.
Recently the CBA’s salary cap system was updated for the 2021/2022 season:
- Chinese players payroll budget US$2.5 – US$6.87 Million/per year
- Over/under payroll budget = 25% luxury tax
- Chinese player MAX. salary = $US937,800/per year
- Foreigner salary cap budget = $US5 Million/per year
EUROLEAGUE BASKETBALL SALARY
Outside of the NBA, the EuroLeague is the most competitive basketball league in the world and players are paid as such. Typically EuroLeague players will make US$400k – $800k/per year.
The best players earn US$2 Million – US$5.4 Million/per year.
In theory:
The EuroLeague is the highest-paying overseas basketball league in the world.
But hear me out:
The EuroLeague is not actually its own league – so to speak.
It’s a competition consisting of the 18 best club teams from Europe.
That’s why salaries – and team budgets – are so high.
So the comparison is a bit unfair to other domestic pro leagues across the world.
It would be like if you hand-picked the highest-paying teams in all of Asia and put them in a single competition.
Salaries would be inflated as well.
Read Also: 10 Best Basketball Shoes For Flat Feet
EUROLEAGUE BASKETBALL TEAM BUDGETS
Real Madrid and FC Barcelona Basquet – both from Spain’s ACB league – lead all EuroLeague basketball teams in overall team budget at US$46.9 Million and US$46.3 Million in 2022.
The average EuroLeague overall team budget is roughly US$23.9M.
| EuroLeague Basketball Teams Overall Budgets (2021 – 2022) | |
| Team | Total budget |
| Real Madrid | US$46.9 Million/yr |
| Barcelona | US$46.3 Million/yr |
| CKSA | US$35.1 Million/yr |
| Armani Exchange | US$31.9 Million/yr |
| Anadolu Efes | US$26.6 Million/yr |
| Fenerbahce | US$25.5 Million/yr |
| Zenit | US$24.5 Million/yr |
| Bayern | US$22.3 Million/yr |
| Maccabi | US$19.1 Million/yr |
| ASVEL | US$16 Million/yr |
| Olympiacos | US$15.9 Million/yr |
| UNICS | US$15.9 Million/yr |
| Monaco | US$15.6 Million/yr |
| ALBA | US$11.7 Million/yr |
| Zalgiris | US$10.6 Million/yr |
| Panathinaikos | US$10.1 Million/yr |
| Crevna Zvezda | US$8.9 Million/yr |
| Data provided by: BasketNews (2022) |
European-based BasketNews did a great report on this topic most recently for the 2021 – 2022 EuroLeague season.
In 2019, French-based publication Basket Le Mag, also did a great report on EuroLeague team budgets.
As you can see:
Although the numbers may have shifted slightly, Barcelona and Real Madrid are still both leading the pack years later.
Other online references such as EuroHoops.Net also supported this idea.
HIGHEST EUROLEAGUE TEAM SALARY BUDGETS
| EuroLeague Team Salary Budgets (2021 – 2022) | |
| CKSA | US$22.4 Million/yr |
| Real Madrid | US$20.4 Million/yr |
| Barcelona | US$20 Million/yr |
| Anadolu Efes | US$15.9 Million/yr |
| Fenerbahce | US$14.3 Million/yr |
| Zenit | US$12.7 Million/yr |
| Armani Exchange | US$11.7 Million/yr |
| Olympiacos | US$9 Million/yr |
| Maccabi | US$7.4 Million/yr |
| UNICS | US$6.9 Million/yr |
| Monaco | US$6.1 Million/yr |
| Panathinaikos | US$5.8 Million/yr |
| Bayern Munich | US$5.6 Million/yr |
| Crevna Zvezda | US$5.5 Million/yr |
| Zalgiris | US$4.5 Million/yr |
| ASVEL | US$4.2 Million/yr |
| ALBA Berlin | US$3.1 Million/yr |
| Data provided by: BasketNews (2022) |
When it comes to actual player salaries CKSA Moscow is reported to have the highest budget at US$22.4 Million/yr to spend on its EuroLeague roster.
Real Madrid (US$20.4M) and Barcelona (US$20M) are close behind.
The average EuroLeague player salary budget is US$10.9 Million/per year.
I know what you’re thinking:
How is it possible Real Madrid has the highest overall budget but the third-highest team budget in the competition?
Taxes.
Get Inside Info on Overseas Basketball (Newsletter) *
Each country in Europe will have a different system and deducts money from its clubs at varying rates.
In other words:
That means the highest overall budget doesn’t necessarily translate to the highest player budget.
So remember when it comes to Europe’s top levels and its highest-paying countries look at:
- Spain (ACB)
- Turkey (BSL)
- Russia (VTB)
HIGHEST-PAID EUROLEAGUE BASKETBALL PLAYERS [CHART]
| Highest paid EuroLeague Basketball Players (2022 season) | |
| Player name | Player salary |
| 1 Nikola Mirotic (Barcelona) | US$5.4M/yr |
| 2 Shane Larkin (Efes) | US$3.5M/yr |
| 3 Vasilje Micic (Efes) | US$3.1 M/yr |
| 4 Nikola Milutinov (CKSA) | US$2.5M/yr |
| 5 Jan Vesely (Fenerbahce) | US$2.5M/yr |
| 6 Nicolo Melli (Olimpia Milano | US$2.2M/yr |
| 7 Walter Tavares (Real Madrid) | US$2.1M/yr |
| 8 Toko Shengelia (Moscow) | US$2M/yr |
| 9 Nano de Colo (Fenerbahce) | US$1.9M/yr |
| 10 Nick Calathes (Barcelona) | US$1.8M/yr |
| Data provided by: Basketnews & EuroHoops.net |
According to multiple reports, Nikola Mirotic of FC Barcelona remains the highest-paid EuroLeague basketball player at roughly US$5.4Million/per year.
The next closest is Shane Larkin (Anadolu Efes, Turkey) at $3.5 million USD/per year.
Outside of this top-10 a number of other players are reported to have cracked the million-dollar mark.
OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES BY COUNTRY [GLOBAL CHART]
| Highest-paying overseas basketball leagues by region (2022) | |
| Global Region Ranking | Top-paying league of area |
| 1. Asia | China (CBA) |
| 2. Western Europe | Spain (ACB) |
| 3. Eastern Europe | Turkey (BSL) |
| 4. Middle East | Iran (SuperLeague) |
| 5. Oceania | Australia (NBL) |
| 6. South America | Brazil (NBB) |
| 7. North America | Mexico (LNPB) |
| 8. Africa | Egypt (SuperLeague) |
| 9. Central America | Nicaragua (LSB) |
When taking into account overseas basketball salaries for each country within its region, Asia is the richest area in the world as multiple leagues and divisions are able to offer ELITE-level contracts ($100k+).
Europe is second.
But due to a steep decline in its basketball wages beyond Europe’s First Divisions, Asia has an overall higher basketball salary on a country-per-country basis.
OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES DATA
Below is data from over +100 overseas leagues I examined from across.
LEGEND:
- mth = month
- yr = year
- k = thousands
- m = millions
- * = unusual financial system that will be explained below the region
AFRICAN OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES
| Country – League | Most reported salary (USD) | MAX Salary ($USD) |
| AFRICA | ||
| Egypt – SuperLeague | 7k – 10k/mth | 19k/mth |
ASIAN OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES
| Country – League | Most reported salary ($USD) | MAX Salary ($USD) |
| ASIA | ||
| China – CBA | $1mill – $3mill/yr | $4.4 mill/yr |
| Hong Kong – HKA1 | – | – |
| Hong Kong – HKA2 | – | – |
| Indonesia – IBL | $2k/mth | $3k/mth |
| India – UBA | – | – |
| Japan – B1 League | $150k – $275k/yr | $1 mill/yr |
| Japan – B2 League | $72k – $81k/yr | $225k/yr |
| Mongolia – MNBA | $2k – $4k/mth | $9k/mth |
| Philippines – PBA | $10k – $20k/mth | $40k/mth |
| Singapore – NBL | – | – |
| South Korea – KBL | – | $500k/yr |
| Taiwan – SBL | – | – |
| Thailand – TBL | $2k – $8k/mth | $18k/mth |
| Vietnam – VBA | $1,500/mth | $2,500/mth |
AMERICAS OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES
CENTRAL AMERICAN OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES
| Country – League | Most reported salary ($USD) | MAX salary ($USD) |
| CENTRAL AMERICA | ||
| Belize – NEBL | $1,000 – $1,500/mth | $2,500/mth |
| El Salvador – LMB | $1,500 – 1,999/mth | $5,500/mth |
| El Salvador – LSB | $501 – $999/mth | 2k/mth |
| Guatemala – Liga Metro | $500 – $999/mth | $1,500/mth |
| Honduras – Liga Mayor | $500 – $999/mth | $1,500/mth |
| Nicaragua – LSB | $1,501 – $1,999/mth | 7k/mth |
| Panama – LPB | 1k – $1,500/mth | $4,500/mth |
NORTH AMERICAN OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES
| Country – League | Most reported salary ($USD) | MAX salary ($USD) | |
| AMERICAS (NORTH AMERICA) | |||
| Canada – CEBL* | $700/game | $1,500/game or $10,500/mth | |
| Canada – ECBL | $1,800 – 2,900/mth | TBD | |
| Canada – NBLC | $2,700 – $3,500/mth | 12k/mth | |
| Mexico – Chihuahua | $1200 – 2k/mth | 5k/mth | |
| Mexico – CIBACOPA | – | – | |
| Mexico – CIBAPAC | $700 – 1k/mth | $1,300/mth | |
| Mexico – LNPB | 7k – 9k/mth | 20k/mth | |
| USA – TBL | $1,300 – $1,800/mth | 7k/mth | |
| *THE CEBL operates on a per-game payment rather than a monthly basis |
SOUTH AMERICAN OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES
| Country – League | Most reported salary ($USD) | MAX salary ($USD) |
| SOUTH AMERICA | ||
| Argentina – LNB (La Liga) | 5k-7k/mth | 15k/mth |
| Bolivia – Libobasquet | $1,200 – $1,400/mth | 6k/mth |
| Brazil – NBB | 8k-9k/mth | 25k/mth |
| Colombia – LPB | 3k – 5k/mth | 9k/mth |
| Chile – Liga Nacional | 2k – 3,300/mth | 5k/mth |
| Dominican Republic – LNB | – | – |
| Ecuador – Liga Nacional | 2k – $3,500/mth | 6k/mth |
| Paraguay – Metro League | – | – |
| Peru – LBL | – | – |
| Puerto Rico – BSN | 4k – 7k/mth | 25k/mth |
| Uruguay – LUB | 5-7k/mth | 12k/mth |
| Venezuela – LPB | – | – |
EUROPEAN OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES
WESTERN EUROPE OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES
| Country – League | Most reported salary ($USD) | MAX salary (USD) |
| WESTERN EUROPE | ||
| England – BBL | $18k – 24k/yr | $69k/yr |
| Europe – EuroLeague | $400k – $800k/yr | $5.4M/yr |
| France – LNB Pro A | $80k – $170k/yr | $300k/yr |
| Germany – BBL | $100k – $300k/yr | $1 Million/yr |
| Germany – Pro A | $1,700 – $2,900/mth | $10,500/mth |
| Germany – Pro B | $1,600 – $2,300/mth | $4,600/mth |
| Germany – Regionalliga | $700 – $1,300/mth | $3,500/mth |
| Greece – Greek A1 | – | – |
| Israel – Premier L. | $140k – $350k/yr | $1.5mil/yr |
| Italy – Serie A | $150k – $350k/yr | $2.25mil/yr |
| Italy – Serie A2 | $4,500 – $5,500/mth | $12,500/mth |
| Italy – Serie B | $1,300 – $2,200/mth | $3,900/mth |
| Italy – Serie C (Gold) | $1K – $1,500/mth | $2,500/mth |
| Italy – Serie C (Silver) | $800/mth | $1,300/mth |
| Italy – Serie D | $300 – $500/mth | $800/mth |
| Spain – ACB (1st Div) | 200k – 500k/yr | $5.4mill/yr |
| Spain – Liga Oro (2nd Div) | $1500 – $2,200/mth | $3k/mth |
| Spain – Liga Plata (3rd Div) | $600 – $1k/mth | $2,000/mth |
| Spain – EBA (4th Div) | $501 – $800/mth | $1,100/mth |
EASTERN EUROPE OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES
| Country – League | Most reported salary ($USD) | MAX salary (USD) |
| EASTERN EUROPE | ||
| Armenia – A-League | $400 – $1k/mth | $4,000/mth |
| Montenegro – Erste Liga | – | – |
| Poland – Energa Basket Liga | – | – |
| Romania – Liga Nationala | – | – |
| Russia – VTB United | $200k – 450k/yr | 4mil/yr |
| Turkey – BSL | 250k – 475k/yr | 4mil/yr |
| Ukraine – SuperLeague |
OCEANIA OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES
| Country – League | Most reported salary ($USD) | MAX Salary (USD) |
| OCEANIA | ||
| Australia/New Zealand – NBL | 120k – 250k | 500k/yr |
| Australia/New Zealand – State Leagues | – | – |
MIDDLE EAST OVERSEAS BASKETBALL SALARIES
| Country – League | Most reported salary ($USD) | MAX salary ($USD) |
| MIDDLE EAST | ||
| Bahrain – Premier League | – | – |
| Iran – SuperLeague | – | – |
| Iraq – SuperLeague (IBL) | $4k – $5k/mth | $8k/mth |
| Jordan – JBL | $5k – $6k/mth | $9,500/mth |
| Lebanon – LBL | – | – |
| Qatar – QBL D1 | $3k – $5k/mth | $15k/mth |
| Saudi Arabia – SBL | – | – |
| UAE – D1 | – | – |
HOW MUCH DO EUROPEAN BASKETBALL PLAYERS MAKE?
The best European basketball players will make US$100K – $300K/per year playing in the top pro leagues.
More realistically though US$1k – 5k/per year/per month is what most overseas players will make.
This is pretty crazy when you actually think about it.
But it’s the reality of the European market.
Consider Spain:
The average salary in Spain’s ACB division (1st Div.) is US$250k – $500k/per year.
Yet:
It would be very rare for a MAX player in Spain’s 2nd division (LEB ORO) to earn even more than US$50k/per season.
And this type of massive financial drop-off is not uncommon.
The same happens in Israel, Germany, Italy etc. – basically every high-level European country.
In fact:
Our study showed Europe actually has the steepest financial drop-off from its top to lower divisions in the world.
Some countries experienced as much as a 1000% decrease in pay when moving down a single division!
BASKETBALL SALARIES IN LOWER-LEVEL EUROPEAN PRO LEAGUES
Overseas basketball salaries in lower-level European leagues can get very low with $500 – $1,500/per month as the norm in these divisions.
So while it may be easy to be wooed by high-end European basketball salaries, don’t fool yourself.
If you are starting out in Europe (3rd – 6th Div.), your salary will be bottom-price.
That’s what happened to me when I started off in Germany.
Overseas basketball salaries in lower-division Europe can get surprisingly low.
So if you want the big money – and aren’t:
- A former NBA player
- Borderline NBA player (G-Leaguer or two-way contract type of talent)
- High major NCAA graduate
- Have an established overseas basketball agent
- Veteran Pro Players with experience in established leagues (5+ years)
….then you better be willing to put in the work for YEARS!
Called For Traveling by former overseas pro Tyler Smith (book below) is a great example of just that.
He grinded for years before getting his six-figure deal.
Luckily:
Overseas basketball in Europe is known for its tier-system structure.
That means there is a:
- 1st Division (highest salaries + best talent in that country)
- 2nd Division (lower salaries + second-tier talent in that country)
- 3rd Division (even lower salaries + third-tier talent in that country)
…etc.
Plenty of opportunities await to prove yourself and move up.
IS BASKETBALL A CAREER
With all this being said, basketball is still a very viable career choice for both high and low-level overseas basketball players.
But you must be prepared to work side jobs (outside of basketball) when initially starting since beginning wages won’t be enough to support yourself financially.
That means it’s advisable all players have skills outside of just basketball.
Those can include:
- Coaching
- Teaching
- Consulting
- Writing
…anything you can think of that you enjoy and will bring in some money.
Only this way can players have a long and fruitful career where they make meaningful money.
Please pay attention to this:
This is where the majority of players get stuck.
They overestimate how much they will make.
They overestimate how quickly they will move up the ladder.
Soon they’re hit in the face with the realization they’re not making enough money to survive.
In the end:
They get inpatient and quit.
Usually that happens after a year or two.
Don’t be that player.
I never made over US$5,000/per month in my career.
Yet I’ve completely changed my life around in the six years I’ve played overseas.
Many others with similar wages have done the same.
But we all follow a specific formula.
I’ve attached some articles below to guide you through that process.
Basketball Salary Advice: Grow Your Income
ABOUT OUR STUDY AND DATA:
- MAX Salary: MAX salary simply means the highest reported salary in that league or country. It could just be a single person who is earning the max or it could be multiple players on different teams. What it shows basically is the maximum a team within that league would be willing to pay for an import player.
- Season lengths: Because some countries have much smaller seasons (2-3 months) and others have seasons that last nearly the entire year (9-10 months), the dollar amount is sometimes accompanied by months and other times by the entire year total.
- Regional leagues: These overseas basketball salary amounts do not take into account the regional leagues players can play in addition to their domestic league.For instance, the best clubs in Europe play in EuroLeague. In Asia it’s the ABL. In Latin America it’s the BCLA.All of these additional tournaments will mean more money, bonuses and incentives.
- Imports – Nationals Salaries: This chart is intended to represent import basketball player salaries but in some regions of the world, nationals are just as skilled as imports and are paid accordingly.
