Erik Spoelstra Salary: Miami Heat Coach Earns $120K Per Game Won

Erik Spoelstra is one of the most respected coaches in the NBA. He is also among those who are paid better in the league.

Spoelstra is the first Filipino-American to become a head coach in the NBA. He took over the Heat in 2008 shortly after Pat Riley retired in 2007. According to Celebrity Net Worth, Spoelstra worked his way up in the Heat organization, starting as a video coordinator in 1995. Now, he is one of the best paid coaches in the league.

The 49-year-old is earning $3 million this year. A report from Patch revealed that a 0.51 win percentage of the Heat in January 2020 means that Spoelstra is earning at least $120,000 per win. Coaches do receive game bonuses and for achievements unlocked, which means his per win game salary could become much bigger.

His career in Miami was highlighted by the “Big 3” era of LeBron James, Chris Bosh and Dwyane Wade. That roster made the NBA Finals four times from 2011 to 2014 and won the championship twice in 2012 and 2013. The achievement of handling a superstar-laden team is a feat worth commending, not all coaches can say they handled a superstar team and guided them to the title. Spoelstra is no ordinary coach and it shows.

The Miami Heat are facing the Boston Celtics in the East Finals series. The winner will earn the right to face the winner of the West Finals series featuring the Los Angeles Lakers against the Denver Nuggets. The Heat are impressive in their playoff run since the NBA restart with no player in the lineup drafted high in the lottery aside from Andre Iguodala, who was nabbed at 9th pick.

Last year, the Heat made Spoelstra the second longest tenured coach in the NBA behind Gregg Popovich after signing the former to a fresh, 4-year extension, per Bleacher Report. They added Jimmy Butler in the offseason and the move paid off and Miami has a chance to make the Finals after six years. The team’s win now mentality instead of rebuilding the franchise which takes years is a brilliant mindset masterminded by team president Pat Riley and executed by Coach Spo.

It looks like management skills run in the family as the father of the Miami Heat’s coach, Jon Spoelstra, worked as an executive for various teams such as Portland Trail Blazers, Denver Nuggets, Buffalo Braves and New Jersey Nets.