NBA Players From These Colleges Make the Most Money
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
One reason students attend college is to learn skills that help them land jobs and maybe even find careers.
So for any aspiring professional basketball players, this list is for you. These are the universities that produce players that make the most money.
See: Most Successful Athlete From Every Decade
Find Out: LeBron James and More of the Richest Athletes Younger Than 40
Some schools churn out many NBA talents, such as Kentucky and Duke, each with over 20 active players. Others, such as Arizona State, have only a few players in the league, but they make the list because one star has landed massive contracts: James Harden accounts for 99.26% of the total earnings by Sun Devils.
Read on to see which schools head the list, and to see if your favorite college makes the top 25.
Last updated: August 4, 2021
25. Memphis
Total earnings: $214,167,776
Active Players: 4
Top Earner: Derrick Rose
Top Earner's Team: New York Knicks
Top Earner's Position: Point Guard
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $155,051,613
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 72.4%
Read: 25 of the Richest Former NCAA Tournament Stars
24. Michigan State
Total earnings: $216,670,772
Active Players: 8
Top Earner: Draymond Green
Top Earner's Team: Golden State Warriors
Top Earner's Position: Power Forward
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $105,729,003
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 48.8%
See: These 25 Colleges Spend the Most on Men’s Basketball
23. Arizona State
Total earnings: $226,023,362
Active Players: 2
Top Earner: James Harden
Top Earner's Team: Brooklyn Nets
Top Earner's Position: Shooting Guard
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $224,349,734
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 99.26%
Find Out: The Richest College Basketball Programs in America
22. Villanova
Total earnings: $232,284,248
Active Players: 8
Top Earner: Kyle Lowry
Top Earner's Team: Toronto Raptors
Top Earner's Position: Point Guard
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $190,048,698
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 81.82%
More: Colleges That Have Cut Athletics Due to Budget Constraints
21. Fresno State
Total earnings: $233,815,918
Active Players: 3
Top Earner: Paul George
Top Earner's Team: Los Angeles Clippers
Top Earner's Position: Shooting Guard
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $177,854,610
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 76.07%
Read: These Universities Profit the Most Off Their Student-Athletes
20. Georgia Tech
Total earnings: $239,223,625
Active Players: 3
Top Earner: Thaddeus Young
Top Earner's Team: Chicago Bulls
Top Earner's Position: Power Forward
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $121,213,318
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 50.67%
See: 17 Worst Money Scandals in Sports
19. Michigan
Total earnings: $261,855,670
Active Players: 7
Top Earner: Jamal Crawford
Top Earner's Team: Brooklyn Nets
Top Earner's Position: Shooting Guard
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $122,587,577
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 46.81%
Discover: States That Produce the Richest Athletes
18. Oklahoma
Total earnings: $281,453,847
Active Players: 3
Top Earner: Blake Griffin
Top Earner's Team: Brooklyn Nets
Top Earner's Position: Power Forward
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $223,359,012
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 79.36%
More: High-Paying Jobs for People Who Love Sports
17. Ohio State
Total earnings: $287,035,915
Active Players: 4
Top Earner: Mike Conley
Top Earner's Team: Utah Jazz
Top Earner's Position: Point Guard
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $206,087,986
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 71.8%
Read: The Best Colleges for High Starting Salaries
16. Texas A&M
Total earnings: $288,967,188
Active Players: 5
Top Earner: DeAndre Jordan
Top Earner's Team: Brooklyn Nets
Top Earner's Position: Center
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $149,247,051
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 51.65%
See: NCAA Stars Who Went On To Make Millions
15. Stanford
Total earnings: $289,427,676
Active Players: 6
Top Earner: Brook Lopez
Top Earner's Team: Milwaukee Bucks
Top Earner's Position: Center
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $144,840,372
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 50.04%
Check Out: 14 Incredibly Rich Retired Athletes
14. Marquette
Total earnings: $299,654,384
Active Players: 5
Top Earner: Jimmy Butler
Top Earner's Team: Miami Heat
Top Earner's Position: Small Forward
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $144,395,731
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 48.19%
More: 15 College Degrees That Won’t Make You Money
13. Indiana
Total earnings: $360,186,481
Active Players: 8
Top Earner: Eric Gordon
Top Earner's Team: Houston Rockets
Top Earner's Position: Shooting Guard
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $138,786,115
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 38.53%
Read: Insanely Expensive Sports Memorabilia
12. Kansas
Total earnings: $381,365,152
Active Players: 11
Top Earner: Joel Embiid
Top Earner's Team: Philadelphia 76ers
Top Earner's Position: Center
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $100,775,877
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 26.43%
See: Which Mascots Make More Money Than You?
11. Syracuse
Total earnings: $389,252,457
Active Players: 6
Top Earner: Carmelo Anthony
Top Earner's Team: Portland Trail Blazers
Top Earner's Position: Power Forward
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $259,881,402
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 66.76%
Bum Steers: 18 Sports Leagues That Failed Miserably
10. Arizona
Total earnings: $396,176,804
Active Players: 11
Top Earner: Andre Iguodala
Top Earner's Team: Miami Heat
Top Earner's Position: Small Forward
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $179,672,344
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 45.35%
More: The 41 Highest-Paying Positions in Sports
9. North Carolina
Total earnings: $400,732,041
Active Players: 12
Top Earner: Harrison Barnes
Top Earner's Team: Sacramento Kings
Top Earner's Position: Small Forward
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $127,522,137
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 31.82%
Read: The Most Valuable Sports Empires — And the Teams That Make Them Rich
8. USC
Total earnings: $419,160,229
Active Players: 9
Top Earner: DeMar DeRozan
Top Earner's Team: San Antonio Spurs
Top Earner's Position: Shooting Guard
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $175,709,827
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 41.92%
Read: How 18 of the World’s Best Athletes Spend Their Fortunes
7. Florida
Total earnings: $433,013,793
Active Players: 5
Top Earner: Al Horford
Top Earner's Team: Oklahoma City Thunder
Top Earner's Position: Power Forward
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $212,136,768
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 48.99%
See: 25 Athletes Who Were Born Rich
6. Connecticut
Total earnings: $482,861,864
Active Players: 6
Top Earner: Rudy Gay
Top Earner's Team: San Antonio Spurs
Top Earner's Position: Small Forward
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $162,706,820
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 33.7%
Check Out: Athletes Who Make Most of Their Money From Endorsements
5. Wake Forest
Total earnings: $582,429,158
Active Players: 7
Top Earner: Chris Paul
Top Earner's Team: Phoenix Suns
Top Earner's Position: Point Guard
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $299,909,419
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 51.49%
More: Athletes Set To Earn Big Money in 2021
4. Texas
Total earnings: $680,249,495
Active Players: 10
Top Earner: Kevin Durant
Top Earner's Team: Brooklyn Nets
Top Earner's Position: Small Forward
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $264,153,846
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 38.83%
Read: Celebrities Who Have Bought Sports Teams
3. Duke
Total earnings: $781,776,239
Active Players: 27
Top Earner: Kyrie Irving
Top Earner's Team: Brooklyn Nets
Top Earner's Position: Point Guard
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $158,426,099
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 20.26%
See: The Richest and ‘Poorest’ Owners in Professional Sports
2. UCLA
Total earnings: $941,478,881
Active Players: 13
Top Earner: Russell Westbrook
Top Earner's Team: Washington Wizards
Top Earner's Position: Point Guard
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $244,370,524
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 25.96%
Find Out: Best (and Worst) Deals in Sports History
1. Kentucky
Total earnings: $1,219,309,400
Active Players: 29
Top Earner: John Wall
Top Earner's Team: Houston Rockets
Top Earner's Position: Point Guard
Top Earner's Career Earnings: $184,827,108
% Top Earner Makes of Total Earnings: 15.16%
More From GOBankingRates
Methodology: GOBankingRates used Spotrac’s NBA College Tracker data to find the 25 colleges that turned out players who make the most total NBA money. For each of these colleges, GOBankingRates found the following data points: (1) university name; (2) total active players in the NBA; (3) total career earnings from these players, (4) top career earner from each school; (5) top earner’s career earnings; and (6) percent top earner’s career earnings make of the (3) total career earnings for the school. All data was collected on and up to date as of April 26, 2021.
This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: NBA Players From These Colleges Make the Most Money
