College athletics are changing faster these days than we can keep up. Time-honored traditions are being thrown to the wayside, replaced by the relentless pursuit of the almighty dollar.
That’s not a judgment. That’s just a fact.
The latest possible change could impact in-season college basketball tournaments. Amanda Christovich of Front Office Sports reported last week that an 8-team invitational in Las Vegas featuring NIL deals as payouts is coming for the 2024-25 season. According to the story, each participating school would receive $1 million in NIL money, and the tournament champion would earn an additional $1 million. Citing anonymous sources, Front Office Sports reported that organizers are talking to Alabama, Duke, FAU, Houston, Kansas, Oregon, San Diego State, St. John’s, Syracuse, and Virginia.
Welcome to the ultimate in pay-to-play. If you support players’ rights, this is a sign of progress. For far too long, schools, coaches, and administrators made money off of unpaid labor. A tournament with actual revenue-sharing should be applauded. But what will these mean for other in-season tournaments?
College basketball's first-ever NIL payout tournament—called 'Players Era'—will be played at MGM Arena in Las Vegas.
— Front Office Sports (@FOS) March 8, 2024
Sources tell FOS the tournament organizers are in talks with:
• Alabama
• Duke
• FAU
• Houston
• Kansas
• Oregon
• San Diego State
• St. Joe's
• Syracuse… pic.twitter.com/AbQRkE9sCD
That’s where things might get a little murky.
Let’s say you’re ESPN. You broadcast several tournaments, especially during the holidays. The Maui Invitational, NIT Season Tip-Off, and the Battle 4 Atlantis are significant parts of your programming. Will there be an expectation that those tournaments will have to offer similar NIL payouts in the future? And who is coming up with the money? Disney-owned ESPN has plenty of cash, but it’s still something that The Worldwide Leader in Sports may have to consider.
There is also something else to mull over. NIL payouts might spur more competition for brand-name teams. Other start-up in-season tournaments offering more money could emerge. It’s not inconceivable to imagine bidding wars for schools with national followings, such as Duke, North Carolina, Kentucky, and Kansas. Another network might televise these tournaments in direct competition with ESPN-backed events.
You could play devil’s advocate and argue that there has always been competition. That is true. However, the competition has previously never included the players potentially having a seat at the bargaining table. Players enjoy substantial leverage and power now, and it could increase even more in a future which may include them being recognized as employees and members of a union.
For now, colleges and conferences have absolute control over schedules. Athletes are told when and where the games are played, and—if healthy and eligible—they are expected to be available for all of them. But with NIL money as part of the equation, athletes might be more empowered to lobby for certain in-season tournaments over others. One event might offer something that the athletes want more than the schools. That’s where things could get interesting.
These are only possibilities. Ultimately, events like the Maui Invitational will probably figure it out. It will not disappear like the men’s Great Alaska Shootout (The women’s version of the tournament still exists.). Plus, ESPN is too big and too powerful. It will successfully navigate this new terrain. Lawyers, accountants, and administrators are undoubtedly already running through various scenarios.
But our viewing experience could change. We must brace ourselves for a college basketball world where the Maui Invitational might not have the best field every year. A fledgling tournament with an unfamiliar name might be loaded with several ranked teams.
It may not be bad for college basketball fans. But getting used to this constantly evolving landscape will take some time.
