You have to really feel bad for these guys, don't you? These poor athletes playing in the NBA for the 2007-08 season are making on average only $5.36 million per year. I mean, really, who can live on that kind of money? All right, perhaps I am being a bit sarcastic. But isn't it amazing that a group of men can earn this much money playing a game for nine months? On average, they earn more in one season than most of the people in the world earn in a lifetime. Granted, that average is affected by highs and lows, but it is still an amazing figure. Here are some of the salaries that go into making that NBA average salary for the 2007-08 season.

THE HIGHS

Kevin Garnett of the Boston Celtics appears to be the highest paid player in the 2007-08 season at $23.75 million. That is about $290,000 per game. If you assume that Garnett plays 40 minutes per game, he gets paid around $7200 per minute. That is a pretty good living if you can get it. Shaquille O'Neal is the second-highest paid player, but he only makes $20 million per year. Poor guy.

THE LOWS

Of course, not every player is Kevin Garnett and not everyone makes almost $24 million. The minimum salary for a player with zero years experience is a mere $427,000 plus some change. Glen Davis, who was a second-round draft pick this year, makes the league minimum. He is also a teammate of Kevin Garnett. I hope Kevin picks up the dinner check. Oh wait, I forgot. NBA players get a per diem of $106 for meals on top of their regular salary. After all, you wouldn't want them to spend their own money on food. That would be unfair.

One of the more entertaining salaries was in 2005-06, when Allan Houston was being paid $19.1 million per year, despite being retired. The former New York Knick shooting guard was forced to retire due to injury. Apparently, he had a very good insurance policy in place.

The NBA does not seem like it is quite as popular as it used to be, but it is obviously doing well enough financially if they can afford the salaries that players are currently making. The average salary ten years ago was $2.6 million per year, which means that the average salary has more than doubled in only a decade. It will be interesting to see what the average salary is in another ten years, and if the NBA player continues to make their multi-millions.

Learn more about this author, Todd Pheifer.
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