AJ Dybantsa hasn’t played a minute in the NBA yet, but the financial ground beneath the league has shifted so much that his rookie deal is already landing in rare company.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft is projected to sign a four-year contract worth about $66.9 million. That puts him almost dead even with the $67.1 million LeBron James earned over four seasons with the Miami Heat.
It’s a striking comparison, though not because the two players are being placed on the same level. The point is bigger than that: NBA money has surged so dramatically that a rookie can now approach the total salary of a player in the middle of one of the most dominant four-year runs the league has ever seen.
Dybantsa’s projected deal breaks down to $14.7 million in 2026-27, $15.49 million in 2027-28, $16.22 million in 2028-29 and $20.46 million in 2029-30. That adds up to roughly $66.91 million.
LeBron’s Miami payday followed a different path, but the total wound up almost identical. He made $14.5 million in 2010-11, $16.02 million in 2011-12, $17.55 million in 2012-13 and $19.07 million in 2013-14, for a combined $67.13 million.
The resumes behind those numbers could not be more different.
When LeBron arrived in Miami, he was already a two-time MVP and widely regarded as the best player in the world. Over those four Heat seasons, he averaged 26.9 points, 7.6 rebounds and 6.7 assists while shooting 54.3% from the field and 36.9% from three-point range.
The production came with a trophy case to match. He took the Heat to four straight Finals, won two championships, two regular-season MVPs and two Finals MVPs. He also picked up four All-Star selections, made All-NBA First Team all four years, and earned three All-Defensive First Team nods along with one Second Team selection.
Dybantsa enters the league carrying a different kind of buzz. At BYU, he put together a huge freshman season, averaging 25.5 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.7 assists while shooting 51.0% from the field and 33.1% from three. The Washington Wizards see him as a potential franchise face as they try to push in the West after acquiring Trae Young and Anthony Davis in massive trades.
The larger story is how fast the league’s economics have climbed. When LeBron joined the Heat in 2010, the NBA salary cap was around $59 million. He had to take less than a maximum deal to help Miami build around him, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.
Now the 2026-27 salary cap sits at $164.9 million, nearly triple that figure. The league’s new $76 billion media deal and global agreements have helped turn the NBA into one of the richest sports properties in the world.
The gap looks even wider when you compare rookie contracts. LeBron’s original four-year deal with the Cleveland Cavaliers was worth $18.8 million. Dybantsa is projected to make nearly $48 million more than LeBron did in that first NBA contract.
That doesn’t say anything about where Dybantsa’s career will go. It just shows how much the money has ballooned. Before he has even stepped on an NBA court, he is set to earn almost exactly what LeBron James made during a Hall of Fame stretch in Miami.
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