In the past, student-athletes played for their respective schools for free. The NCAA then adopted an interim policy suspending name, image, and likeness (NIL) rules in 2021, allowing college athletes to profit from their own image.
Since then, top athletes from all sports have signed endorsement deals with all major footwear brands. Athletes at the highest levels of competition also benefit from such deals.
In recent comments, Jasmine Jordan, daughter of the legendary Michael Jordan, claimed that if NIL had been available to him during his college career at the University of North Carolina in the 1980s, her father could have made trillions of dollars.
“Maybe that first Nike deal wouldn’t have been as low as it was,” Jasmine told Footwear News. “It would have changed the game. He would have potentially approached his contracts with Nike differently.
“Looking at his Funko Pop collectibles or the fact that people still wear his UNC jersey, to reap the benefits from it today, we’re talking making trillions at this point.”
Jasmine, who is also the basketball field rep for women’s sports marketing at Jordan Brand, highlighted a new perspective of what she thinks the women’s athlete roster should look like for the brand.
“Our approach to NIL has been focused on women. Also, it’s a full-fledged, long-term relationship for us. It’s not about collecting whatever check that you can because you did a quick post on Instagram. If we’re signing you, we’re signing you for your college years or resigning you from high school into college and a maybe pro,” Jordan said.
She further adds that NIL allows athletes the opportunity to consider who they are from a business perspective.
“It’s about partnership and being valued and appreciated. I’m constantly drilling that into young athletes because I never want an athlete to feel deceived. Also, NIL can really just be college. You don’t have to enter your pro years with a brand. That allows you to either focus solely on college or it allows for longevity entering the pro years,” Jordan said.
According to Yardbarker, Jordan achieved great feats while in college, including 1982 ACC Rookie of the Year, 1982 national champion, 1982 All-Tournament Team, 1982 Freshman All-American 1983, and First Team All-ACC.
He was also a member of the 1983 East Regional Team, 1983 consensus All-American, 1983 National Player of the Year (The Sporting News), 1984 First Team All-ACC, 1984 ACC Player of the Year, 1984 ACC Athlete of the Year, 1984 ACC Player of the Year, 1984 ACC Athlete of the Year, 1984 consensus All-American, 1984 consensus National Player of the Year, and 1980s NCAA Tournament.
Other honors include All-Decade Team, NCAA Tournament All-Time Team, the No. 1 male athlete in ACC history, and the top-15 player in the 75th Anniversary of March Madness.
