Curry inks US$201mil deal with Warriors

LOS ANGELES: Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry (pic) has clinched a new five-year deal worth US$201mil (RM863mil), the richest contract in NBA history, ESPN reported.

Curry, who recently helped the Warriors to their second NBA Finals crown in three years, is the first player to break the US$200mil (RM859mil) barrier, ESPN said on Friday, citing the player’s agent Jeff Austin.

News of the agreement wipes away any uncertainty concerning the future of Curry, who had been on a four-year contract worth a relatively modest US$ 44mil (RM189mil) until his new deal.

Despite being one of the league’s highest profile stars, Curry had languished way down the pecking order of the NBA’s best-paid players.

According to the basketball-reference.com website, Curry had been the 82nd best-paid player in the league, earning just over US$12.1mil (RM52mil) last season.

That figure is dwarfed by the league’s highest-earner, LeBron James, who stands to earn US$33.3mil (RM143mil) next season and US$35.6mil (RM153mil) in 2018-2019.

According to a survey of the world’s best paid athletes released earlier this month by Forbes, Curry had earned an additional US$35mil (RM150mil) in endorsements to go alongside his US$12mil (RM52mil) salary.

However, his new deal would make him the world’s fourth highest paid athlete – in terms of annual salary and winnings -- placing him behind Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo (US$58mil - RM249mil), Barcelona’s Lionel Messi (US$53mil - RM228mil) and the NFL’s Andrew Luck (US$47mil - RM202mil) on Forbes’ 2017 list. – AFP