As a long-time Boston Celtics fan, I am contractually obligated to despise LeBron James. Watching him bury threes to send Paul Pierce and company packing in the second round of the NBA playoffs was not fun. I know Bulls fans can relate.
But as a long-time fan of capitalism, I believe with all my heart that James is worth every penny of the $48 million in total earnings he raked in over the past year.
Some will object that he doesn’t deserve to be so wealthy because his talent and physical prowess are attributable to his genes. I reply that it takes a ton of hard work and a steely determination to turn natural strengths into spectacular skills.
Still, I could complain. No amount of effort on my part would have allowed me to play professional basketball and, so, in some sense, it isn’t “fair” that James gets to reap the benefits of doing so. But then, why should his genes redound to my benefit? They are his genes, aren’t they?
Importantly, allowing James to get as rich as he can by exploiting his talents in exchange for money encourages him to develop those talents, and does so far more effectively than if he had to share the benefits of doing so with others. And because he did develop those talents, we all get to enjoy watching him display them.
Well, you know, not me, as a Celtics fan, but other people.
For all the enjoyment that LeBron James gets from being paid handsomely to do something he presumably loves to do, it is a mere fraction of the amount of enjoyment his millions of fans get from watching him on television or cheering him on in the stands.
Basketball is a zero-sum game in which one team wins and the other team loses. Voluntary exchange in a free market, on the other hand, is a positive-sum game in which we all come out ahead.
