How does Kentucky women’s basketball stack up in the name, image and likeness era?

It’s quite likely that, in the current climate of college athletics, a conversation surrounding student-athletes will lead to a discussion of name, image and likeness.

Commonly referred to as “NIL,” this concept has shaken up what it means to be — and what is expected of — a student-athlete. Specifically in women’s college basketball, some of the biggest names in the sport have become quite successful at building their brands and using that platform to secure deals.

According to Opendorse, which bills itself as an “athlete marketplace and NIL technology company” with more than 100,000 affiliated athletes, women’s basketball ranked fourth in ‘Top NIL activities by sport” through May 2023.

Angel Reese and Flau’jae Johnson, who play for 2023 national champion LSU, frequently make headlines for their groundbreaking achievements in the NIL space. The pair signed NIL deals with both Raising Cane’s and apparel and merchandise company Campus Ink after their NCAA title season. Reese also recently appeared in a Starry commercial with NBA standouts Karl-Anthony Towns and Zion Williamson as part of the brand’s “3IsGreaterThan2” campaign and, at the start of May, signed an NIL deal with Mercedes-Benz of Baton Rouge, La. Johnson, who also has a burgeoning rap career, signed an NIL deal with JBL Audio at the end of March.



Examples of similar business savvy extend throughout the Southeastern Conference and beyond. In April, Virginia Tech leading scorer Liz Kitley co-hosted cooking classes alongside Gourmet Pantry and Cooking School chef Roya Gharavi. In March, North Carolina star guard Deja Kelly inked a deal with Crocs.

University of Kentucky women’s basketball players past and present have also benefited from NIL. Recent graduate Blair Green posted a paid partnership with Screamin’ Mimi’s Salsa to her Instagram.

Starting guard Maddie Scherr partnered with SIXSTAR Pro Nutrition and Walmart to provide meals to those in need through Feeding America at the end of April.

Measuring an athlete’s financial worth

All that said, a UK athlete’s exact NIL earnings can’t be provided by the school, and there are more than a few reasons for that. For example, no blanket guidelines exist at this point that detail exactly how NIL can and should be regulated, meaning different state laws and compliance requirements could lead to inaccuracies.

On3.com, which provides its own NIL valuations for myriad student-athletes across several sports, listed five women’s basketball players in its NIL 100 at the time of the publishing of this article. According to the site, “these rankings are based on the potential influence they have as an individual.”

For example, Reese checks in at No. 5 overall with 4.6 million social media followers and an NIL valuation of $1.6 million, with Johnson at No. 36 (2.4 million followers, $823,000 valuation), Iowa’s Caitlin Clark at No. 42 (969,000 followers, $796,000 valuation), UConn’s Paige Bueckers at No. 50 (1.6 million followers, $736,000 valuation) and high school senior and Arizona signee Jada Williams at No. 92 (1.2 million followers, $535,000 valuation).

Whether or not high school athletes can benefit from NIL is yet another gray area. According to Opendorse, through May 24 there are 29 states that allow high school athletes to benefit from NIL in some capacity.

The KHSAA’s bylaws prohibit Kentucky high school athletes from benefiting from name, image and likeness as a means of maintaining “amateur status.”

In hopes of regulating NIL, several states have also taken action regarding how deals- and earnings-related information can be obtained.

In March 2022, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear signed SB 6 into law. The bill, which “creates new sections of KRS Chapter 164 to provide protections for student-athletes seeking compensation through name, image, and likeness agreements or seeking an athlete agent (and( provide similar protections for institutions,” also includes language that restricts state universities from releasing documents related to NIL in response to open records requests.

Another example of why an institution like UK Athletics would be unable to disclose specific NIL earnings lies in a lack of a uniform reporting process. If and when a student-athlete reports an NIL deal, there may be a difference in how exactly that information is detailed. Additionally, it’s difficult to quantify something that may be ever-changing. At UK, this could look like customizable gear purchased through the UK Team Shop and other fan stores where an athlete’s earnings can change at any given time.

If all of these factors seem difficult to track or comprehend, it’s because the reality of NIL is that it’s still extraordinarily new.

Following the Supreme Court ruling in NCAA vs. Alston in June 2021, and the NCAA vote that came soon after which explicitly allowed student-athletes to receive compensation in exchange for use of their name, image, and likeness, college athletics has seen just two school years with NIL in effect.

How is UK doing?

We know that athletes can now make deals. And we’ve quickly learned that a rich environment for creating such deals can enhance a school’s attractiveness in the minds of recruits. In most cases, athletes contract directly with companies. However, much has been reported nationwide about boosters forming “collectives” from which funds to support deal-making may also be drawn.

Some say those funds are only to be used for deal-making once athletes are on campus. Others contend those funds should be made available for recruiting inducements. For the moment, “recruiting rules” are as unclear as they’ve ever been and challenged at every turn.

The NCAA has been seeking federal government assistance to structure consistent rules for NIL from state to state, an important step, according to Kentucky Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart.

“We’ve got 50 states that are running it 50 different ways,” Barnhart said last week. “There’s just no way college athletics can continue to function in that way.”

When it comes to how UK women’s basketball has performed with NIL, the school can speak only in generalities.

Per UK Athletics, the team did better in the 2022-23 school year with regard to NIL than in 2021-22 by nearly doubling their number of deals. During the 2022-23 school year, UK women’s basketball players reported as many as eight deals apiece.

On May 25, women’s basketball scored a big “first” for UK Athletics when head coach Kyra Elzy named Liz Brown the program’s new NIL director. This was the first official instance in any UK sport of a staff member holding a position explicitly titled “NIL director.”

“Brown will be responsible for helping players develop and manage their brands,” UK’s announcement said. “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.”

UK said each of its teams have members on staff who deal with NIL matters in capacities allowed by the NCAA; this new position is simply the first time it’s been titled as such. Prior to the creation of the NIL director position by Kentucky women’s basketball, these duties were handled by recruiting director Aisha Foy.

Foy parted ways with the program after the 2022-23 season to take another job. The position of recruiting director was then turned into NIL director.

Elzy said in the press release that the program wanted to dedicate a position solely to assist players with NIL.

“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. “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 ever-changing landscape, and we are excited to see the enhancements that she will bring to our program.”

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