As the smoke from the NFL lockout begins to clear, we can finally rest assured that the coming sports year will be full of labor peace and exciting games. Oh wait, it turns out that just as one pro sports lockout gets resolved, another one (and by all accounts a much lengthier one) is just getting started in the NBA. Yes indeed, all we can look forward to this year in the pro basketball world is exciting shots of lawyers in pressed suits walking into conference rooms, with nary a slam dunk in sight. And with all this bickering from both sides, it’s time to have a nice little reality check just to remind us how lucrative the sports industry really is. While the average American spends their time finding ways to reduce credit card debt with 0% interest credit cards, athletes and owners are complaining over how to divvy up their billion dollar industries. So which athletes should never have to worry about missing any paychecks? Here's a list of the top ten wealthiest athletes in America.