Dan Dakich
Videos by OutKick
Remember pre-COVID when the NBA started dominating the summer sports landscape? Summer league in Vegas. Ridiculous contracts to mediocre players with over inflated numbers.
It all trickles down, ladies and gentlemen. What happens in the NBA never, ever stays in the NBA. Like an old man with a bad prostate, it trickles down, baby!
I once asked a college player why he puts towels on his legs when he comes to the bench. His response? “Saw it in the NBA.”
Stands to reason that free agency would be next. College hoops media demanded we acquiesce to 18- to 23-year-olds. We Must Make Them Happy!
“Everyone in college athletics makes a fortune off the backs of players’ labor” is the operative phrase.
My operative phrase? “My Ass.”
Not one current college football or basketball player had anything to do with the current TV contract of any Power Five league signed years ago. Not one current player has anything to do with current sponsorship agreements signed by the same Power Five schools, yet somehow the whining, scared-ass media demands we “give the players their fair share.”
Players’ “fair share” of NOTHING is NOTHING, but I digress.
Fast forward to today — or more accurately the past 10 days. Miami transfer signs with a billionaire jock sniffer for 2 years, $800,000 and a car. The transfer, Nigel Pack, was good enough to get his previous coach Bruce Weber fired at Kansas State.
There is a saying in coaching that every horseshit team has a leading scorer. Pack averaged 17 pts per game as a 5’9″ shooting guard. Pack is the poster child for this saying, yet got rewarded with $400,000 a year.
As easily predicted, the “star” of University of Miami Isaiah Wong was pissed. He made it known, threatened to transfer, and deals were amended.
I absolutely love it. Think of Wong. Wong busted his backside, dealt with the early morning practices, workouts and was making “only” $100,000. Here comes an outsider making four times that. Can you blame him for being a bit peeved?
NIL means “Name Image and Likeness” meaning that due to a player’s popularity, his “name image and likeness” has value. Pack grew up in Indianapolis, played at Kansas St with no real national success, so his “name image and likeness” in Miami was worth as much as
my hairbrush. Zip, zero, nada.
This is simply buying players aka pay for play.
It’s fantastic.
Now, we turn to University of Pittsburgh football star WR Jordan Addison. Addison is considered the best WR in college football. However, his QB Kenny Pickett is gone to the NFL, and schools and money have come calling.
This is why I love NIL season. The rumors!
Did USC and Lincoln Riley offer $3,000,000 per year and a house? Did Pitt Coach Pat Narduzzi and Lincoln Riley have a heated phone conversation? Who the hell knows, but I love NIL rumors!
Without NIL drama, the off-season would just be some meathead former players spewing some inane nonsense about a dull recruit. With NIL, we have stars, money and intrigue. You tell me which is better.
Everyday, we await who’s coming who’s going and which sanctimonious media member will release a tweet asking for “common sense” or a “reboot.” Screw that. I want more transfers, more money changing hands, and more free agency.
