Johnson tops earnings list for athletes.

FLIRTING WITH A SPOT AMONG the elite ranks of NBA superstardom, former Razorbacks guard Joe Johnson was the highest-paid athlete with Arkansas ties, pulling in a cool $12 million in 2006.

Though his team, the Atlanta Hawks, has a total annual payroll that ranks 26th out of the 30 NBA teams with $47.8 million, the sharp-shooting Johnson became its franchise player when he inked a five-year, $70 million deal before the 2005-06 season. The struggling Hawks obtained Johnson on Aug. 19, 2005, from the Phoenix Suns in a sign-and-trade transaction in exchange for Boris Diaw and two conditional draft picks.

The 6-foot-7 guard/forward's $12 million was enough to top the list of the 35 highest-paid professional athletes who have called Arkansas home or attended school in the state.

Johnson played two seasons at the University of Arkansas (1999-01), earning All-America honors as a sophomore and a Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Year nod while there. He is entering his third season of the five-year deal and will pull in just more than $13 million in 2007-08.

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The former Little Rock Central standout has steadily improved his output during his six NBA seasons and became Atlanta's marquee player last season en route to a career year in a handful of statistical categories.

Injury became a problem last season for the first time in Johnson's career, when an ailing right calf sidelined him for the season's final 21 games, dampening his best NBA campaign. Johnson was named to his first NBA All-Star game and finished ninth in the league in scoring with a 25 points-per-game average, before his NBA-best streak of 376 consecutive games played came to an end with the calf injury Dec. 10.

Johnson was Atlanta's workhorse, having logged an average of 41.4 minutes played per game, which was second-best in the league last year. Johnson also helped lead Team USA to an 8-1 record and a bronze medal in international basketball competition in 2006.

CNN/Sports Illustrated NBA beat writer Jack McCallum recently wrote that he expects the Hawks to challenge for a playoff spot this season and that Johnson "is ready to be recognized as an elite player."

Hunter Lurking

The last time Arkansas Business compiled a list of the state's highest-paid professional athletes, in 2005, Minnesota Twins firecracker Torii Hunter, a product of Pine Bluff, sat atop the group with a $6.5 million annual payday.

Though he was bumped by the Atlanta Hawks' Johnson this time, it's likely Hunter will soon far surpass the field as he's likely to entertain top-ofthe-market offers after becoming a free agent when the season wrapped up two weeks ago. The seven-time Gold Glove winner is considered by many analysts to be the top free agent on the market this off-season and is rumored to be on the radar of several teams, including the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox and St. Louis Cardinals.

Hunter was brought up through the Twins' well-respected development system, beginning with a $200,000 paycheck in 1999.

"I came up with these coaches when I was 17 years old and not able to hit a slider," he told the Associated Press following what could have been his last game with the Twins Sept. 30. "They've been with me since Day 1. I'm still hopeful that I can come back and play with the team that I grew up with; I'm still hopeful. But whatever happens, happens."

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Most analysts agree that the electrifying centerfielder will be dealt from the Twins, as the ball club does not have a reputation for spending on high-priced free agents.

Baseball players took up six of the top 35 spots on the list, totaling $30.1 million.

Pat Burrell--who tends to downplay his Arkansas ties, unlike most on the list--was born in Eureka Springs and pulled in $9.75 million with the Phillies in 2006. The leftfielder helped lead Philadelphia to the post-season this year with a .258 batting average, but the Phillies made a quick exit last week after being swept by the Colorado Rockies. Burrell, who went 2-for-ll in the three-game sweep, made $13.25 million in 2007.

A.J. Burnett, the pride of Central Arkansas Christian School, was short-changed on the list, as his $2.2 million salary in 2006 does not accurately reflect the $13.3 million he earned in 2007 once bonuses kicked in with his new team, the Toronto Blue Jays. He would be the highest-paid athlete if the list were ranked by this year's earnings.

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Benton native Cliff Lee, whose Cleveland Indians are currently battling the Boston Red Sox in the American League Championship Series, made the list with a salary of $406,200 in 2006, but he pulled in a beefy $3 million in 2007.

Gridiron Gold Par for the course in Arkansas, football dominates the list.

Gridiron stars tackled 20 spots on the list and scored more than $50 million among the state's 35 best-paid athletes.

Shawn Andrews, who played at 375 pounds while opening holes for the Pazorbacks' running game, rode his 2004 No. 1 draft pick status to a $10.7 million payday for the Philadelphia Eagles in 2006. That doubled the $4.9 million he earned in 2005 and was enough to make him the highest-paid football player on the list.

Andrews signed a seven-year contract extension in June 2006, leading many to speculate it was at the franchise's request that he dropped nearly 40 pounds before the deal was inked. That's not the case, the 340-pounder told the AP.

"I had a friend my age who died of a heart attack," Andrews said. "Secondly, I feel a lot better getting into my stance. It's a lot easier to go play after play without having that big stomach in the way and gasping for air all the time."

Several newcomers with Arkansas ties are rookies this season; otherwise they would make the list, including ex-Hogs Jamaal Anderson (2007 first-round pick, Atlanta Falcons), Chris Houston (second-round, Atlanta) and Tony Ugoh (second-round, Indianapolis Colts).

Down But Not Out

The Arkansan on the list who undoubtedly takes the most pride in his home state is middleweight boxer Jermain Taylor, who lost a Sept. 29 match in Atlantic City, N.J., to Kelly Pavlik, Taylor's first loss since he turned professional.

Pavlik, who is to Youngstown, Ohio, what Taylor is to Little Rock, overcame a second-round knockdown to take Taylor's title belts with a brutal KO in Round 7.

Taylor earned an estimated $7.6 million in 2006, which is simply the total of the two fight purses he earned in bouts against Winky Wright in Memphis and Kassim Ouma in Little Rock that year. The purse in the Wright fight was $4.6 million, and the Ouma package was roughly $3 million.

"That's just purse amounts," said Andrew Meadors, business adviser to Team Taylor. "There are a lot of other factors that go into what Jermain earns, like pay-per-view cuts, endorsements and all of those outside things we don't need to get into."

Meadors said Taylor has recovered fine from his dramatic collapse in the corner in Atlantic City and that Team Taylor stands by the boxer's post-fight comments that a rematch with Pavlik will indeed be his next fight.

"A lot can happen in this business to change things, but there will undoubtedly be a rematch and will likely be the next fight for both fighters," Meadors said.

Boxing beat writers agree that following the fireworks of the first Pavlik-Taylor fight, the rematch will likely earn record paydays for both boxers and will draw more eyes to the middle-weight ranks than ever during Taylor's two-year reign as champ.

By Nate Hinkel

[e-mail]

2006 Top Ten Golfers

Ken Duke          $520,678
Tag Ridings       $498,242
Ron Whittaker     $310,046
Glen Day          $290,635
Craig Lile        $211,840
Bryce Molder      $205,413
Brenden Pappas    $193,745
John Daly         $192,134
Richard Johnson   $107,833
Deane Pappas       $87,414

Highest-Paid Athletes

Ranks by salary and/or winnings in 2006

     First Name Last Name        2006 Salary   2005 Salary

 1   Joe Johnson                 $12,000,000    $2,358,954
 2   Torii Hunter                $10,750,000    $8,000,000
 3   Shawn Andrews               $10,713,125    $4,922,930
 4   Pat Burrell                  $9,750,000    $7,250,000
 5   Jermain Taylor           $7,600,000 (1)           (2)
 6   Kevin Williams               $7,042,000      $380,000
 7   Corliss Williamson (3)       $6,000,000    $5,500,000
 8   Derek Fisher                 $5,390,000    $4,930,000
 8   Matt Jones                   $5,390,000    $1,260,000
10   Rod Smith                    $5,009,510    $5,010,810
11   Bobbie Williams              $5,000,000    $1,550,000
12   Eric Hinske                  $4,425,000    $3,100,000
13   Mark Martin                  $4,282,548    $5,994,353
14   Jason Peters                 $3,252,420      $309,510
15   David Barrett                $3,055,000    $2,000,000
16   Greg Wesley                  $2,900,000    $2,208,750
17   Ryan Franklin                $2,600,000    $2,600,000
18   A.J. Burnett                 $2,200,000    $3,650,000
19   Jannero Pargo                $2,080,000      $895,248
20   Carlos Emmons (4)            $2,000,000    $3,840,000
21   Kenoy Kennedy                $1,904,000    $3,953,320
22   Ronnie Brewer                $1,595,400           (5)
23   Dante Wesley                 $1,010,000      $661,280
24   DeAngelo Williams              $980,000           (5)
25   Mark Bradley                   $954,400    $1,930,000
26   Steve Foley                    $879,290    $2,291,430
27   Keith Traylor                  $820,000    $1,015,000
28   Ken Duke                       $520,678           (2)
29   Ken Hamlin                     $502,200      $381,760
30   Cleo Lemon                     $430,610      $11,3037
30   Caleb Miller                   $430,610      $309,730
32   Jordan Babineaux               $429,840      $309,840
33   Corey Williams                 $428,520      $309,730
34   Cliff Lee                      $406,200      $345,000
35   Cedric Houston                 $354,400      $324,750

     First Name Last Name     Team/Sponsor                 Sport

 1   Joe Johnson              Atlanta Hawks             Basketball
 2   Torii Hunter             Minnesota Twins             Baseball
 3   Shawn Andrews            Philadelphia Eagles         Football
 4   Pat Burrell              Philadelphia Phillies       Baseball
 5   Jermain Taylor           Team Taylor                   Boxing
 6   Kevin Williams           Minnesota Vikings           Football
 7   Corliss Williamson (3)   Sacramento Kings          Basketball
 8   Derek Fisher             Los Angeles Lakers        Basketball
 8   Matt Jones               Jacksonville Jaguars        Football
10   Rod Smith                Denver Broncos              Football
11   Bobbie Williams          Cincinnati Bengals          Football
12   Eric Hinske              Boston Red Sox              Baseball
13   Mark Martin              Dale Earnhardt Inc.           Nascar
14   Jason Peters             Buffalo Bills               Football
15   David Barrett            New York Jets               Football
16   Greg Wesley              Kansas City Chiefs          Football
17   Ryan Franklin            St. Louis Cardinals         Baseball
18   A.J. Burnett             Toronto Blue Jays           Baseball
19   Jannero Pargo            New Orleans/OKC Hornets   Basketball
20   Carlos Emmons (4)        New York Giants             Football
21   Kenoy Kennedy            Detroit Lions               Football
22   Ronnie Brewer            Utah Jazz                 Basketball
23   Dante Wesley             Carolina Panthers           Football
24   DeAngelo Williams        Carolina Panthers           Football
25   Mark Bradley             Chicago Bears               Football
26   Steve Foley              San Diego Chargers          Football
27   Keith Traylor            Miami Dolphins              Football
28   Ken Duke                                                 Golf
29   Ken Hamlin               Dallas Cowboys              Football
30   Cleo Lemon               Miami Dolphins              Football
30   Caleb Miller             Cincinnati Bengals          Football
32   Jordan Babineaux         Seattle Seahawks            Football
33   Corey Williams           Green Bay Packers           Football
34   Cliff Lee                Cleveland Indians           Baseball
35   Cedric Houston           New York Jets               Football

                              Arkansas Connection:
     First Name Last Name     Hometown/College

 1   Joe Johnson              Little Rock/University
                              of Arkansas
 2   Torii Hunter             Pine Bluff
 3   Shawn Andrews            Camden/UA
 4   Pat Burrell              Eureka Springs
 5   Jermain Taylor           Little Rock
 6   Kevin Williams           Fordyce
 7   Corliss Williamson (3)   Russellville/UA
 8   Derek Fisher             Little Rock/University of
                              Arkansas at Little Rock
 8   Matt Jones               Fort Smith/UA
10   Rod Smith                Texarkana
11   Bobbie Williams          UA
12   Eric Hinske              UA
13   Mark Martin              Batesville
14   Jason Peters             UA
15   David Barrett            Osceola/UA
16   Greg Wesley              England/University of
                              Arkansas at Pine Bluff
17   Ryan Franklin            Fort Smith
18   A.J. Burnett             North Little Rock
19   Jannero Pargo            UA
20   Carlos Emmons (4)        Arkansas State University
21   Kenoy Kennedy            UA
22   Ronnie Brewer            Fayetteville/UA
23   Dante Wesley             UAPB
24   DeAngelo Williams        Wynne
25   Mark Bradley             Pine Bluff
26   Steve Foley              Little Rock
27   Keith Traylor            Malvern
28   Ken Duke                 Arkadelphia/Henderson
                              State University
29   Ken Hamlin               UA
30   Cleo Lemon               ASU
30   Caleb Miller             UA
32   Jordan Babineaux         Southern Arkansas University
33   Corey Williams           Harmony Grove/ASU
34   Cliff Lee                Benton/UA
35   Cedric Houston           Clarendon

Sources: National Football League Players Association, USA Today.com
Salaries Database, Nascar, business managers, agents

(1) Purse total from Winky Wright and Kassim Ouma bouts

(2) Undisclosed

(3) Now retired

(4) Released from Giants prior to current season; currently not playing
in the NFL

(5) Undrafted