Every NBA Team Payroll in 2026
With the NBA Finals the only thing left this season, let's take a look how each team in the Association spent this year.
It shouldn't be much of a surprise that the highest-spending teams were, generally, the better ones. Seven of the top teams when it comes to payroll made the playoffs.
But closer to the bottom than the top, you'll find one of the Finals participants and another that looked like it could for a bulk of the season, too.
Keep in mind, with how NBA rosters work, the numbers change often. We've used Basketball Reference's totals for each team and for each team's highest-paid player as of May 31, 2026.
1. Cleveland Cavaliers - $212.1 Million
- Highest paid player: Evan Mobley and Donovan Mitchell - $46.4 million
Cleveland continues to be a team on the rise, making the Eastern Conference Finals this season. They're inching closer to older, though.
2. New York Knicks - $207.5 Million
- Highest paid player: Karl-Anthony Towns - $53.1 million
The Knicks are playing for the NBA Finals for the first time in three decades thanks to some shrewd front-office moves.
3. Golden State Warriors - $204.7 Million
- Highest paid player: Stephen Curry - $59.6 million
The dynasty may be over, but Curry and Co. don't look quite finished yet and the Warriors are still spending.
4. Los Angeles Lakers - $195.3 Million
- Highest paid player: LeBron James - $52.6 million
The bang-for-buck is there with James and Luka Doncic. Does LBJ have another run to the Finals in him before he's finished?
5. Houston Rockets - $194.7 Million
- Highest paid player: Kevin Durant - $54.7 million
You almost have to feel for Durant, whose may be one of the best ever on the court, but still draws "overrated" comments thanks to a large lack of postseason success.
6. Minnesota Timberwolves - $193.5 Million
- Highest paid player: Anthony Edwards - $45.5 million
The Timberwolves are trending upward, too, with Edwards and a young roster filled with especially solid frontcourt players.
7. Philadelphia 76ers - $193.4 Million
- Highest paid player: Joel Embiid - $55.2 million
Philly has made the Eastern Conference semifinals six times in the last nine seasons, but no further.
8. Los Angeles Clippers - $190.1 Million
- Highest paid player: Kawhi Leonard - $50 million
The Clippers' best players are long-time veterans. They may need a youth movement soon.
9. Boston Celtics - $189.5 Million
- Highest paid player: Jayson Tatum - $54.1 million
Still one of the best teams in the NBA, Boston is sitting pretty in the league's hierarchy.
10. Indiana Pacers - $188.7 Million
- Highest paid player: Tyrese Haliburton and Pascal Siakam - $45.6 million
From the NBA Finals in 2025 to 19 wins in 2026. Who knows what's next in Indiana.
11. New Orleans Pelicans - $187.6 Million
- Highest paid player: Zion Williamson - $39.4 million
Williamson will almost certainly never live up to his pre-draft hype and the Pelicans feel stuck in neutral with him as the centerpiece.
12. Orlando Magic - $187.3 Million
- Highest paid player: Franz Wagner - $38.7 million
The Magic have finished first or second in the division each of the last three years, but three straight first-round exits stings.
13. Portland Trail Blazers - $187.2 Million
- Highest paid player: Jrue Holiday - $32.4 million
Portland has bigger money problems than payroll, apparently. But, hey, the Blazers made the playoffs for the first time since 2021.
14. Toronto Raptors - $186.8 Million
- Highest paid player: Scottie Barnes - $38.7 million
After a half-decade of down times, the Raptors seem to be coming back, though they're not near that late 2010s run just yet.
15. Oklahoma City Thunder - $186.7 Million
- Highest paid player: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: $38.3 million
The Thunder went from the darlings of the NBA to perhaps its most loathed team in just about a year. But they don't seem to be falling from near the top of the standings soon, anyway.
16. Denver Nuggets - $186.7 Million
- Highest paid player: Nikola Jokic - $55 million
The Nuggets have made eight straight postseasons and won the Finals back in 2023, but this year's first-round loss served as a disappointment.
17. Atlanta Hawks - $186.5 Million
- Highest paid player: CJ McCollum - $30.7 million
Atlanta received more from its roster than it would have looked like on paper before the season started. The question is whether it can continue another year.
18. Miami Heat - $186.4 Million
- Highest paid player: Bam Adebayo - $37.1 million
The Heat have missed the playoffs just four times in coach Erik Spoelstra's 18 years. But they haven't made it further than the first round since making the Finals in 2023.
19. Phoenix Suns - $186.2 Million
- Highest paid player: Devin Booker - $53.1 million
With Grayson Allen and Dillon Brooks on the roster, Phoenix certainly has a reputation. But Booker still has the goods to get the team to the playoffs.
20. Sacramento Kings - $186.2 Million
- Highest paid player: Zach LaVine - $47.5 million
Sacramento has made the playoffs once since 2006 and won just 22 games this year, the second fewest since 1960.
21. Detroit Pistons - $186 Million
- Highest paid player: Cade Cunningham - $46.4 million
Cunningham delivered in 2025-26, leading the Pistons to their first division title since 2008. They should be solid for a while.
22. San Antonio Spurs - $183 Million
- Highest paid player: De'Aaron Fox - $37.1 million
Speaking of solid for a while, the Spurs have exceeded their timetable and reached the NBA Finals in Victor Wembanyama's third season.
23. Chicago Bulls - $182.8 Million
- Highest paid player: Anfernee Simons - $27.7 million
With just one playoff appearance since 2017, the Bulls look directionless and 2026 leaves questions.
24. Washington Wizards - $182.5 Million
- Highest paid player: Anthony Davis - $54.1 million
The Wizards have finished last in the division each of the last three seasons. With Davis and Trae Young, they would have been a great team five years ago…if the team had them then.
25. Dallas Mavericks - $182.5 Million
- Highest paid player: Kyrie Irving - $36.6 million
Dallas is still digging out of a hole with its own fans after trading Doncic. Cooper Flagg could be special, at least.
26. Charlotte Hornets - $182.4 Million
- Highest paid player: LaMelo Ball - $38 million
The Hornets haven't been to the playoffs in a decade. In other words, this version of the Hornets has made it just once since changing from the Bobcats.
27. Milwaukee Bucks - $181.3 Million
- Highest paid player: Giannis Antetokounmpo - $54.1 million
Milwaukee missed the playoffs for the first time since 2016, but, when healthy, Antetokounmpo remains one of the NBA's best. Whether the roster around him is good enough remains another story.
28. Utah Jazz - $172.6 Million
- Highest paid player: Lauri Markkanen - $46.4 million
Danny Ainge has a storied history as an executive but the Jazz have been one of the NBA's worst teams in his five-year stint.
29. Memphis Grizzlies - $156.5 Million
- Highest paid player: Ja Morant - $39.4 million
Thirty-three different players suited up for the Grizzlies in what was an absolute mess of a season.
30. Brooklyn Nets - $154.7 Million
- Highest paid player: Michael Porter Jr. - $38.3 million
Porter is a solid player, but it's easy to see how the Nets won just 20 games this season.
Related: How NBA Player Contracts Work: Rookie Deals, Extensions, Max Contracts
Related: What Is the NBA Rookie Salary Scale?
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This story was originally published June 4, 2026 at 10:10 AM.