Here's What It Costs For Team USA’s Basketball Superstars To Stay Outside Olympic Village

Over the next two weeks, the Olympic Village in Paris’ suburbs will house more than 14,000 athletes—but LeBron James won’t be one of them. Neither will Stephen Curry, Breanna Stewart or any of the other men’s and women’s basketball players representing Team USA at the Paris Games. Forbes staff writer Justin Birnbaum joins "Forbes Talks" to break down just how much it costs for USA basketball to make their own arrangements.

0:00 Introduction
0:12 Olympic Villages: What Are They Like?
3:07 What Do The Olympic Lodgings Cost?
4:01 Who Covers The Bill For Olympic Athletes To Stay At Olympic Village?
8:58 Does Star Power Translate To Olympic Accommodations?

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[youcantalwaysgetwhatyouwan]

they are literally the wealthiest athletes in the Olympics 😂

[gotbjosh]

Basketball isn't tennis. $15M estimate is doable for the NBA & these celebrity, mega multi-millionaire athletes with corporate endorsement deals. Olympics only happens every 4 years, so the cost is manageable.

[aarond]

Looks like USA basketball is in a nice big hotel with all the families. Looks like a nice setup

[gcn]

Oh come on! Multi-million dollar athletes, faces of the NBA, franchise players, and a couple of future hall of famers. Doesn't take a genius to figure out why they're staying somewhere else.

[Taureanfitness]

The accommodations are so low standard. It's pathetic and the food is disgusting. I don't blame athletes for wanting to say elsewhere

[Goxilla]

Didn´t they rent a yacht for some previous olympics?

[fwill]

Can you imagine a 6 foot plus man with hardly no body fat sleeping on cardboard in the heat? And have the nerve to be over 30 years old???😂😂😂😂

[doc-vglq]

idc about the Olympics. why should my tax payer money pay to pamper NBA players who are already richer than most of the country? if NBA fans want to fund them that's fine but why does everyone else need to spoil them?

[Recondelta]

😂😂😂 15 million is peasant money 💰 for them! Drop in the bucket! 🪣

[NichoD]

$15M is like a happy hour tab for Nike

[JhustineProvido]

LeBron is literally a billionaire and he's old (not even a joke) he's not gonna sleep on a crappy cardboard bed with no AC lmao

[myab]

My Glorious 7ft King KD aint sleeping on no damn cardboard bed!!!

[Havoc]

They had 5 exhibition games selling out 20, 000 tickets each starting at $100 up to $ 1, 000. That should help.

[ssboooy]

Turned a 4min interview into 10mins, asking the same question 5 ways.

[emilythurman]

No AC and Cardboard beds??? Inadequate food??? Those are NOT conditions for prime athletic performance. TEAM USA should have put all of our athletes in another facility.

[fongsterturbo]

This Forbes lady wants him to say that the money is coming solely from the government. She wants to find a way to talk down on the basketball organization for opting out of the village. Millionaires players net worth over $100 million and over 60 billion dollar industry. These players are the best of the best there

[HOVN]

Imagine Nikola Jokic sleeping on a cardboard bed 😂

[joshualelo]

hmmmm...so go to paris with my family and stay in a private luxury hotel with great security, or sleep on a dorm room bed with a roommate in a small space with no A/C in the middle of summer....tough choice lol

[IamTonyStark]

Why would you want to put billion dollar athletes the same rooms as $100 athletes

[imjustanalien]

Some of these NBA stars make nearly $450, 000 per game to play basketball. The olympics paid them $0 for this recent win (sold out game, btw) against South Sudan. They deserve to stay at the most luxurious hotels or resorts Paris has to offer.