What is David Stern's Net Worth?

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Name: David Stern Born: September 22nd, 1942 Company: National Basketball Association (NBA) Position: Commissioner

David Stern currently has a net worth of an estimated:

$135,000,000


Information:

David Stern is the current Commissioner of the NBA (National Basketball Association). Stern has held the post since 1984, when he took over for former Commissioner Larry O'Brien.

Stern earned a degree in history from Rutgers University before attending Columbia Law School. After leaving school, Stern started working with the National Basketball as outside counsel.

12 years later (1978), Stern officially joined the NBA as General Counsel. Stern became Executive Vice President of the league in 1980 - four years later, he was named Commissioner.

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During David Stern's term of Commissioner of the NBA, the league has exploded in popularity. Revenues have soared as well, with the National Basketball Association reportedly bringing in $3.8 billion in revenues during the 2010-11 season.

The emergence of stars such as Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Larry Bird helped to usher in a new era of prosperity for the NBA and its players. Revenues soared, franchise values exploded and player salaries went through the roof. The explosion of popularity of the game of basketball lead to greatly increased commercial support as well, as companies such as Nike rushed to do shoe and apparel deals with the most popular players in the league. Michael Jordan still brings in tens of millions of dollars per year thanks to his lucrative Nike deal.

It hasn't been all sunshine and roses for David Stern and the NBA though. The league has still not been able to achieve labor peace, as there have been four lockouts during Stern's term of Commissioner (1995, 1996, 1998-99, 2011). In addition, six teams have been forced to relocate since 1984 (Clippers, Kings, Grizzlies, Nets, Hornets, Sonics).

The league has welcomed seven new franchises to the league since David Stern took over as Commissioner. The Hornets, Timberwolves, Heat, Magic, Grizzlies, Raptors and Bobcats have all been welcomed into the fold over the past 20 years. The Grizzlies and Raptors represented the NBA's first expansion into international markets, as Vancouver and Toronto were both awarded teams. The Vancouver Grizzlies would later move to Memphis.

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David Stern's salary information is very hard to come by. As a matter of fact, his annual salary is reportedly only known to a select few NBA owners, which is quite an odd fact.

According to this article, David Stern reportedly makes between $20 and $23 million per year as Commissioner of the NBA. Considering that Stern has been Commissioner of the league for nearly 30 years, and given the growth of league revenues during that time, it's not all that surprising to hear that Stern could be earning in excess of $20 million per year.

Stern's rumored salary is the source of frequent grumbling from the players, as they have had to endure four lockouts over the past 17 years. How can a league that is reportedly having so much trouble making money, they argue, pay their commissioner $20 million per year?

The truth is, concrete information regarding David Stern's annual salary is not known to the public, but $20 million would make sense to me, given his long term as Commissioner.

Assuming that Stern has received steady pay increases throughout the year, I would feel safe pegging his personal net worth at around $135 million.


Notes:

David Stern is worth 1,746 times more than the median US household

If David Stern sold everything that he owned, he could fund the United States' deficit spending for 0 days.




Note: Net Worth changes calculated at 4 pm EST daily

The net worth pages are strictly for entertainment purposes only. The information on these pages is based on speculation and shouldn't be construed as being accurate in any way.