Cooper Flagg hasn’t played a single minute in the NBA, but he might already be changing the financial game in professional sports.
According to Spotrac projections, the Dallas Mavericks’ No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft could earn a staggering $930 million from NBA contracts alone by the time he’s 32 years old. As Fox Sports reported, that would make him the first athlete in North American sports history to come that close to $1 billion in on-field earnings — surpassing legends in MLB, the NFL, and even the NBA itself.
NBA: Flagg could eclipse LeBron and Wemby
While LeBron James became the first North American athlete to reach billionaire status overall, his on-court earnings tell a different story. As Fox Sports noted, LeBron has earned $528.6 million in career salary, with a possible $581.3 million total if he picks up his 2025-26 player option.
Even today’s highest-paid rising stars aren’t projected to touch Flagg’s potential. Fox Sports pointed to Jayson Tatum’s record-setting five-year, $313.9 million deal — which would leave him at $469.4 million in earnings by age 32. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander could land a $380 million extension and reach $535.3 million by 2032. And Luka Doncic’s trajectory was hampered when he was traded this past season, making him ineligible for a supermax — even if he stretches to a $722 million career total.
Even Victor Wembanyama, Flagg’s closest comp, trails him. Per Fox Sports, if Wembanyama hits all his contract escalators, he might reach $850 million in earnings by age 31. Flagg, if he hits elite status, would beat that by more than $80 million before the same age.
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MLB: Soto and Ohtani can't match Flagg’s ceiling
Baseball’s biggest stars currently hold the largest contracts in North American sports, but they’re still projected to fall short of Flagg’s future. As Fox Sports highlighted, Shohei Ohtani’s landmark $700 million deal was eclipsed just a year later by Juan Soto’s $765 million mega-contract with the Mets. Yet even Soto, who has an opt-out after 2030, is projected to earn $847.3 million in total — and only if he doesn’t restructure.
Fox Sports also mentioned names like Kyle Tucker and Paul Skenes as future high-earners, but none are trending toward the $900 million mark, let alone a billion. “The first $1 billion MLB player likely hasn’t begun his career yet,” the outlet concluded.
MORE: Duke’s Cooper Flagg No. 1 pick by Mavericks makes NBA Draft history not seen since 1977
NFL: Quarterbacks fall far behind
Despite the NFL’s massive popularity and recent salary cap surge, no football player is close to Flagg’s potential trajectory. Fox Sports noted that Patrick Mahomes — arguably the league’s biggest name — will max out around $497.7 million in earnings when his current 10-year deal expires in 2032.
Others like Josh Allen ($504.6 million by 2031), Dak Prescott ($436.3 million by 2029), and even up-and-comer Jayden Daniels, who Fox Sports said could become the first $100 million-per-year quarterback, won’t sniff Flagg’s potential. Daniels would earn just north of $400 million by age 33, per their report.
Fox Sports added that other top 2024 QB prospects — like Caleb Williams and Cam Ward — could eventually earn similar deals, but the billion-dollar mark remains out of reach.
NHL: No comparison
In the NHL, it’s not even close. According to Fox Sports, Alex Ovechkin leads all hockey players with $161.7 million in career earnings, and even Connor McDavid’s future max deal might only push him into the $200 million range due to league salary caps.
The math behind Flagg’s rise
Flagg’s path to $930 million, as outlined by Spotrac, is built on three key contracts: a rookie deal worth $62.7 million from 2025 to 2028, a potential five-year, $359 million supermax extension, and a final five-year, $509 million supermax extension if he remains elite through age 31. That gives him a total of $930 million across 14 seasons — with time left for at least one more deal to push him past the billion mark.
In the end, Fox Sports framed Flagg as the top candidate to achieve a feat even LeBron, Mahomes, Soto, and Wembanyama haven’t reached: becoming the first billion-dollar athlete based solely on what he does on the court.