The NIL Effect: UNC Basketball’s Adaptation to a New Era
Tipoff at the Duke / UNC basketball game at the Dean E. Smith Center in Chapel Hill, North Carolina on February 7, 2006. Source: Anders94 / Wikimedia Commons
For decades, college athletes have brought in millions for their schools while being barred from profiting off their own name. In 2021, previous restrictions were lifted, and the college sports landscape was reshaped for good. NIL, short for Name, Image, Likeness, refers to an athlete's ability to profit from their personal brand through endorsements, sponsorships and other commercial opportunities. For decades, the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) prohibited college athletes from earning money beyond scholarships. However, in 2021, that all changed. After over a decade of legal battles starting in 2009 with former UCLA basketball player Ed O’Bannon suing the NCCA, along with extreme public pressure, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously in NCAA v. Alston that NCAA restrictions on education-related benefits for student athletes violated antitrust law. While the Supreme Court ruling itself did not directly address NIL, it reduced the ability of the NCAA to restrict athlete compensation. In July of 2021, the NCAA suspended its NIL restrictions, meaning athletes can now sign endorsement deals, hire agents, and profit off their brands.
This shift has had a profound impact on college athletics, including here at UNC. With the ability to profit off their own brand, athletes, universities, and corporations have all had to navigate this new landscape. UNC has adapted to these changes by utilizing a “collective.” An NIL collective is a third-party organization that receives funding from donors (businesses and alumni) to create NIL opportunities for athletes. Collectives are independent from the university and have the option to operate as non-profit or for-profit entities.
UNC’s NIL collective sits at around $20 million since the hiring of Bill Belichick as the university’s head football coach. In August of 2024, the University consolidated into a single collective called “Carolina NIL.” This entity covers all UNC sports and is managed by Old Well Management, which is the sole distributor of the collective money. This means Old Well Management is responsible for overseeing and distributing all funds raised by the collective, which ensures that the funding is being allocated appropriately to support UNC athletes. Directly paying a player violates NCAA guidelines, so Old Well Management facilitates NIL opportunities, which players then get paid for. Examples of these opportunities include sponsorships with local businesses, paid appearances, social media promotions, and more.
For instance, in March of 2023, Heels4Life, the former NIL collective for UNC football, partnered with TABLE, a Carrboro-based nonprofit, to package food for over 800 local children and their families. This event involved 25 football players and highlighted the community engagement aspect of NIL activities. Additionally, individual athletes have been able to secure notable NIL deals, including this past season when both Eliott Cadeau and Seth Trimble participated in brand endorsements. Seth Trimble secured an NIL deal with Powerade while Eliott Cadeau partnered with Marriott.
It is undeniable that UNC’s men's basketball team has benefited financially from the decision to suspend NIL restrictions. Whether it was Armando Bacot becoming one of the highest-earning college basketball players through partnerships or UNC’s retention of RJ Davis for a fifth season, NIL has played a major role in contributing to the income of not only UNC basketball players but the program as a whole.
Even with North Carolina being historically one of the country’s top basketball programs, it inevitably has and will continue to see some challenges when it comes to NIL deals. One of the many difficulties has been navigating the explosion of the transfer portal and the use of agents. The use of agents makes it difficult for basketball programs because they are no longer recruiting a player based on whether a school is the best fit academically and athletically. Recruitment now often involves negotiations between a program and a player's agent, primarily centered around financial incentives. While the amount of money collectives offer to players is not publicly disclosed, it is clear that UNC basketball was outbid this past off-season as their top three targets, Oumar Ballo, Clifford Omoruyi, and Aaron Bradsha, reportedly were paid upward of $3 million combined to play for their respective schools.
UNC Football has also seen major shifts due to NIL, particularly in how the program recruits and retains talent. The hiring of Bill Belichick as head football coach has been accompanied by a substantial increase in the football program's NIL budget, reportedly rising from $4 million to $20 million. This financial commitment aids the University in terms of program competitiveness when attracting top athletes. With NIL becoming a prominent recruiting tool, UNC is better equipped to offer financial packages that allow it to compete with SEC or Big Ten programs for talent. However, a major difference between the football and basketball programs, which could be a determining factor in the impact of NIL, is program size. The football program has a roster of anywhere from 85 to 105 players, meaning NIL money is distributed across a larger group than the basketball program, which typically has 13 scholarship players, leaving NIL money to be concentrated on the team's star players.
As NIL continues to change the landscape of college athletics, UNC must adapt to maintain its reputation as a top basketball program. While the benefits of NIL are clear, the challenge of competing for top talent will persist. The university’s investment into its NIL collective signals a strong commitment to maintain its athletic program’s elite status. However, as NIL becomes even more influential in college sports recruiting, UNC will have to strike the right balance between tradition, competition, and financial incentives to maintain the successful future of Carolina athletics.