From $12,500 to $50 million, NBA fan shows how salaries changed from Bob Cousy to Stephen Curry

The NBA salaries have skyrocketed to new heights. Free agents are signing for more money than ever. Young stars are agreeing to massive contract extensions worth more than $200 million.

It was not always like this, of course. Michael Jordan has famously made way more money off his famous shoe line than he did on his contracts with the Chicago Bulls. It has been a meteoric rise of late for NBA player salaries.

One creative reddit user broke down how the NBA got to this point with its massive compensation for its players. He took a look at the history of contracts from Bob Cousy to Stephen Curry.

What did the research study of contracts find?

The redditor put together a list of the top salaries each year in the NBA since 1949. He posted the numbers and adjusted for inflation. The chart shows how dramatically salaries have changed over time.

The list begins with Tony Lavelli, who had the highest salary in the first year of the NBA at $16,125. George Mikan, aka Mr. Basketball, had the highest salary in the league from 1951-54. He made $20,000 in 1954, which is equivalent to $229,000 when adjusted for inflation.

Bob Cousy, aka the Houdini of the Hardwood, took over the honor of highest paid player from 1956-59. He made $25,000 annually. That is about $279,000 today.

The next bump in salaries and game changers

Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell had a historic rivalry. The two were also the highest-paid players of the era. Chamberlain had the highest salary from 1960-65 at $65,000. That is about $667,000 in today’s dollars.

Russell overtook the honor when Chamberlain signed a three-year, $300,000 deal with the Philadelphia 76ers. Russell and the Boston Celtics then bumped his salary to $100,001 out of spite. Russell was the highest-paid player, and then Chamberlain got the honor back when he made $250,000 in 1969. That is $2 million today.

Salaries continued to rise in the '70s as the NBA competed for players against the ABA. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar held the title as highest paid from 1974-78. He made $650,000 per year, about $3.7 million today.

Bill Walton and Moses Malone were the first to earn $1 million per year in 1980. Abdul-Jabbar and Julius Erving joined them at the million dollar level soon after.

Legends Magic Johnson and Larry Bird then brought in the next big pay raise for the league. Johnson was the highest paid at $2.5 million per year from 1984-87. Patrick Ewing followed for four years. He made a league-high $4.25 million in 1991. Johnson earned $14.6 million in the 1994-95 season he actually did not play in.

The GOAT sends salaries soaring

Michael Jordan sparked the new era in player’s salaries. He made a league-high $30 million in 1997 and $33.1 million the next season ($62.7 million when adjusted for inflation).

The big man Shaquille O’Neal was the highest paid in 2000, when he brought in $17.1 million. He and Kevin Garnett then traded the title from 2000-09. Garnett made a league-high $24.7 million in 2009.

Lakers legend Kobe Bryant was then the highest-paid player for seven years. He made a high of $30.4 million in 2014. That is $40.3 adjusted.

The new broadcast TV mega deals saw the salaries skyrocket once more in 2016. LeBron James was the highest-paid player in that season at $30.9 million. It was the only season where he made the most in the league.

Stephen Curry has claimed the title for six seasons since. He made a record at the time of $48.0 million last season.