Kentucky WBB hires Liz Brown for new "NIL Director" position

ZGeogheganKSR

Kentucky women’s basketball is embracing the name, image, and likeness era.

On Thursday morning, the program announced the hiring of Liz Brown for a brand new position titled NIL Director. According to UK, Brown “will be responsible for helping players develop and manage their brands, educating student-athletes on how to make smart decisions, while maximizing their NIL opportunities, and serving as an NIL liaison between internal units, among numerous other related duties.”

Brown comes to Lexington after spending the last two seasons at Fordham University, the first as a director of administration and the second as an assistant coach on the women’s basketball team. She’s also spent time as a director of basketball operations and assistant coach at Marshall.

“We knew we wanted to dedicate a position on our staff that could provide players with the training and tools to be successful in the NIL space,” Elzy said in UK’s press release, “and Liz was the ideal candidate to fill that role. She is creative, innovative and personable, all of which are qualities that you look for in an NIL Director. Her dynamic influence and adaptable approach are fitting for this everchanging landscape, and we are excited to see the enhancements that she will bring to our program.”

This news comes on the heels of Kentucky also hiring a new recruiting assistant, Jodi Ansert, earlier this week.

Liz Brown has been named NIL Director for @KentuckyWBB, a new position designed to provide players with education and opportunities to build and manage their brands.

Welcome to Lex, Liz. ✨https://t.co/MnrFtoyby9
— Kentucky Women’s Basketball (@KentuckyWBB) May 25, 2023

Brown, a native of Baltimore, MD, is a 2015 graduate of the University of Richmond (VA), where she was a four-year starter for the Spiders’ women’s basketball team. She later received a master’s degree in sports management from the University of New Haven while also serving as an assistant coach in 2017-18.

This move by Elzy is a welcome one as the NIL era continues to expand. Creating a position solely for NIL direction should help the program evolve its pitch to potential recruits and even current players as to why they should suit up for the Wildcats. This is an important (and necessary) addition to the staff moving forward.