Back in March, Forbes released its list of billionaires, which saw arguably the best basketball player of all time and owner of the Charlotte Hornets, Michael Jordan, make the list for the first time. And recently, Matt Moore of CBSSports detailed where Jordan actually gets his money from.

As noted by Moore, because of the lawsuit Jordan filed against a now-defunct chain of groceries for improper use of his likeness, part of the proceedings have required the release of his endorsement earnings figures over the past 15 years.

As reported by the Chicago Tribune, between 2000 and 2012, Nike has paid the six-time NBA champion $480 million during that period. Jordan also received %18 million from Gatorade, $14 million each from Hanes and Upper Deck, as well as $10.6 million from fragrance company XEL. Add the $90.24 million he made as a player, and those figures reach $536 million over 12 years, which Moore points out is on average, $44.7 million annually, or more than twice what LeBron James made last year as a max contract free agent.

As a side note, Forbes valued the Hornets at $725 million, and Jordan reportedly earned $90 million just last year.

Moore notes that this stems from Jordan not only being the best basketball player of all time, but also from the way he became a cultural phenomenon and transcended what it meant to be a superstar athlete.

Jordan paved the way for the multi-billion industry now known as sports marketing, with companies like Adidas recently inking Houston Rockets star James Harden to a 13-year, $200 million deal. Last year, Nike matched an offer by Under Armour to former MVP Kevin Durant, which amounted to a reported $265 to $285 million.

Dominick's Finer Foods, a defunct Chicago grocery store was sued by Jordan for printing a coupon that offers a $2 discount on a piece of steak.