What Kind Of Playoff Return Did The Cavs Get From LeBron's $23.5 Million Salary?

LeBron James just reclaimed his throne atop the NBA by defeating Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors in a dramatic NBA Finals. He also delivered the city of Cleveland its first championship season in more than 50 years.

The Cleveland Cavaliers likely now view LeBron’s $23.5 million salary, which was the highest on the court during the NBA playoffs, as worth every penny. However, yet according to CNN’s Player ROI metric, LeBron wasn’t even close to the best value in the playoffs.

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The metric takes into account each player’s Game Score, an NBA statistic that uses a weighted average of points, assists, rebounds, steals and blocked shots, as well as missed shots, personal fouls and turnovers.

CNN calculated LeBron’s playoff Player ROI at 1.0, which falls into the “earned their keep” category. NBA MVP Curry, who earned less than half of LeBron’s salary, finished the playoffs with a Player ROI of 1.1. Although that number slightly edges LeBron’s in terms of value, it also falls into the “earned their keep” category.

Although LeBron won the NBA Finals MVP award, CNN determined that Richard Jefferson, who earned just $1.5 million this year, was the Cavs best playoff investment. Jefferson generated a playoff player ROI of 2.9, which places him in the “good bargain” category.