Who cashes in first in the initial March Madness of the NIL era?

The moment has lived within NCAA tournament montages since 1995. There was Allen Iverson, racing up the court in a second-round game against Weber State, heaving up a 3-point air ball as the final seconds evaporated. Teammate Don Reid soared under the basket, grabbed the errant shot in mid-air and immediately shot a reverse follow-up that banked in as the buzzer sounded. Legendary coach John Thompson thrust both fists in the air and pumped his legs.

The Georgetown player closest to Reid on the play, among the many erupting in a frenzied celebration, was Jerome Williams, who went on to play nine years in the NBA. Williams, who founded the NIL-focused company Alumni Pros Global Sports, recalled that when the Hoyas returned to campus following that 1995 game, the buzzer-beater merely generated short-lived conversation on campus, in clubs, at restaurants. This was before YouTube, before Twitter and certainly before NIL. Reid never received a dollar from that shot.

But what if he had made the same buzzer-beater this month — the first March Madness of the Name, Image and Likeness era?

“That would have been an NFT,” Williams told On3. “Every time there is a NCAA tournament, that could be a potential movement of that NFT. That would have been a moment that Don Reid could financially benefit from for the rest of his life. That would definitely hold a significant six-figure minimum, but he would also gain on the royalty factor. It could be exponential.”

If you follow college basketball, you know the names — U.S. Reed, Lorenzo Charles, Tate George, Christian Laettner, Tyus Edney, Bryce Drew, Mario Chalmers, Kris Jenkins, Jalen Suggs and more. All have earned a niche in NCAA tournament history by making iconic shots. But they also made those shots at the wrong time to be able to earn any compensation. 

This year, finally, unlikely heroes will be able to financially capitalize on game-winning shots. Call them the “One Shining Moment NIL All-Stars.” As the first round is set to tip-off in a few hours, we don’t know who they will be, where they will be from or when they will happen. But they will happen, creating never-before-seen financial opportunities for players. In addition, it will present challenges that they and their schools must now navigate.

“You are going to see players be able to use their NCAA tournament as a springboard to build their brand, which is going to make them not only more marketable on a national level but more noticeable and marketable in a local business scenario,” Peter Schoenthal, CEO of Athliance, told On3. “Local businesses in these college towns might realize, ‘Wow, this person has a big following, I’d rather do a feel-good story with this athlete rather than put up that billboard or do that commercial.’

“It will be awesome.”

March stage is a big deal

Some premier players, including Gonzaga’s Drew Timme and Chet Holmgren, Duke’s Paolo Banchero and Memphis’ Jalen Duren, enter the tournament with deals already announced. But it is the other scenario, the unlikely hero who will emerge over the next three weeks, that is especially alluring because those are about singular moments that will endure over time. 

Dale Hutcherson, a Memphis-area attorney who specializes in sports and trademark law, said NIL potential for March Madness stars “far exceeds” that of one-game football stars such as Jared Casey, the Kansas football player who caught the game-winning two-point conversion against Texas. Also, depending on how significant the moment, their NIL could be used for decades to come in commemoration.

“Because of the size of the March Madness stage, these unlikely stars will not only become household names but they will be able to make serious income based on the platform on which they find themselves,” Hutcherson told On3. “The beauty of NIL is that it allows these unlikely stars to be compensated for the value they bring at this very moment in time, which is an awesome bit of added glory that they may never have the chance to obtain again.”

The NFT marketplace, which has exploded over the past year in more mainstream adoption, is ideally suited to tap into the success of stars creating singular moments in the tournament. 

“The cool thing is it will hold value and grow over time in a really neat way,” Jim Cavale, CEO and founder of INFLCR, told On3. “That isn’t necessarily the same as the local Ford dealership saying, ‘Hey, you’re now cemented in Valparaiso history, Bryce Drew, because you made that shot and did the floor dive. We want you to promote our car dealership.’ That’s a little bit different, but both will be possible.”

Local interest as well as national notice

Mit Winter, a Kansas City-based sports attorney who played college basketball at William & Mary, envisions many national brands wanting to build campaigns that run for a few weeks during and shortly after the tournament. There will be plenty of local interest as well for particular stars. For instance, Winter recalled, Chalmers’ shot sent the 2008 Kansas-Memphis national title game into overtime while also forever establishing the guard as a legend in Lawrence. 

“That shot became known locally as ‘Mario’s Miracle’ and would have probably generated some significant NIL activity,” Winter told On3. 

Industry leaders universally applaud athletes’ ability to capitalize on tournament stardom. But there are caveats. How can athletes try to capitalize on these business opportunities during the nationally televised tournament and while they are full-time students? Will they have the bandwidth to review contracts and potential activations while also focusing on practice?

“If you hit the game-winning shot as an underdog to beat Kansas, all eyeballs will be on you,” Chris Aumueller, CEO and founder of storytelling company Fanword, told On3. “The question is are you prepared then to handle the outreach of companies? I would imagine many athletes probably aren’t. There’s definitely going to be a lot of challenges for athletes who don’t have representation. It will happen.”

Echoing the need for sound representation is Tom McMillen, the former University of Maryland All-American who now is CEO of LEAD1 Association, which represents athletic directors from the 130 FBS institutions. He also noted that schools have to be mindful of not being too proactive in helping athletes with deals or else they risk encountering Title IX issues, among other issues. 

McMillen recommended the NCAA enlist an ombudsman of some sort on retainer. It could provide a hotline as a NIL educational service for athletes, so players who may be suddenly bombarded with monetizing opportunities aren’t just scrambling, flailing in different directions for information and guidance.

“This was always one of the things with NIL, that there was always going to be a consequence, whether it’s your schoolwork, your game, your mental health,” he said. “It is time-consuming. There will be consequences. Kids have to be very careful not to lose focus on why they are there. … Certainly these kids need some representation. There is going to be a lot of 15 minutes of fame.”

NIL representation could be important

In addition, Lyle Adams, the founder and CEO of NIL company Spry, said that some businesses seeking to secure deals with tournament stars could include “unsavory clauses” in contracts. And amid the adrenaline-charged whirlwind of the moment, players may not grasp long-term ramifications. 

“This could be the moment that launches some kids’ careers,” Adams told On3. “Maybe you have a really good tournament and you’re a preseason All-American next year, your marketability is going through the roof. But if you sign something in perpetuity, or for the rest of college, you really can’t capitalize on your future success.”

From a school standpoint, Winter says one factor that could slow NIL activity specifically during the tournament is how strict schools are going to be with their NIL policies. Many, if not most, Winter said, stipulate that an athlete can’t engage in NIL activities while participating in team activities, or something along those lines. If a school takes a broad stance on a provision like that, it could prevent a player from signing NIL deals while his team is on the road for tournament games.

“That could hurt a player’s chances of capitalizing on deals that a company wants to enter into quickly after a big shot,” Winter said. “For example, a player could be prevented from sending out a sponsored social media post right after a game, or even for multiple days, if the team is on the road waiting to play its next game.”

Hutcherson, the trademark law attorney, stressed that athletes need to know the power and earning potential they can gain long-term through protecting their intellectual property. He said to have proprietary interest such as trademark and intellectual property ownership is to have power in controlling your destiny in the business world. 

“These athletes will have the opportunity to act fast on these trademark opportunities by filing marks that could earn them long-term dollars from both a goods-and-services standpoint as well as from a licensing standpoint,” Hutcherson said. “This tournament will bring the potential for huge trademark opportunities, which has the potential to turn into massive earning potential on a short-term and long-term basis.”

With the arrival of the NIL era, this will be a March Madness unlike any we have seen, with a wide array of opportunities awaiting marketable stars who suddenly emerge. When the “One Shining Moment” song plays after the April 4 national championship, the annual captivating montage will for the first time showcase a plethora of overnight stars who can, finally, earn compensation for their on-court heroics.

“This,” Williams said, “was what NIL was meant to do.”