The Phoenix Suns have one of the 10-highest paid athletes in the world.
Forbes released a list of the world’s highest paid athletes of 2023 and Kevin Durant came in at No. 10 on the list with $89.1 million in earnings according to the site.
$44.1 of his earnings were on the court, while $45 million came from other endeavors.
Brett Knight wrote of Durant: “Durant was traded from the Brooklyn Nets to the Phoenix Suns in February, but the wheeling and dealing has not been confined to the court. Through his investing firm, 35V, he has picked up stakes in the Premier Lacrosse League, nutrition brand Happy Viking, League One Volleyball, women’s sports league network Athletes Unlimited, a Major League Pickleball team, Fanatics’ Mitchell & Ness label, digital creator business Goldenset Collective, sports software startup ScorePlay and Tiger Woods’ TMRW Sports just in the last ten months. He also has a growing media empire in the Boardroom and one of the NBA’s most valuable sneaker deals with Nike, which was recently upgraded to a lifetime contract. Michael Jordan and LeBron James are the only other two NBA players who have received lifetime deals from the shoemaker.”
The rankings were based on earnings from May 1, 2022 to May 1, 2023.
More: Phoenix Suns’ Kevin Durant says lifetime Nike deal ‘dream come true’
Who else made the highest paid athletes in the world list for 2023?
Durant wasn’t the only Arizona connection on the list.
Former Arizona State golfer Phil Mickelson was No. 7 on the list with total earnings of $106 million, $104 million of it from his LIV Golf earnings. Only $2 million were off the golf course.
Soccer superstars Cristiano Ronaldo ($136 million), Lionel Messi ($130 million) and Kylian Mbappe ($120 million) led this list, with NBA star LeBron James at No. 4 ($119.5 million) and boxer Canelo Alvarez at No. 5 ($110 million).
Dustin Johnson, with LIV Golf like Mickelson, is sixth at $107 million, with NBA star Steph Curry eighth at $100.4 million.
Tennis star Roger Federer was ahead of Durant on the list at $95.1 million.
More: Phoenix Suns’ Devin Booker on the highest paid athletes list, and his salary could skyrocket
Reach Jeremy Cluff at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @Jeremy_Cluff.
Support local journalism: Subscribe to azcentral.com today.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix Suns’ Kevin Durant among world’s highest paid athletes in 2023