CELSIUS expands NIL focus through deals with college basketball's top young stars

CELSIUS continues to make a major push into the NIL marketplace. 

The energy drink made a splash during the football season with NIL partnerships facilitated by Learfield with stars like Heisman finalists Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix, Michigan standout running back Blake Corum and two-way Colorado All-American Travis Hunter. 

Now CELSIUS returns to college sports with new NIL deals with USC women’s basketball star JuJu Watkins, Duke standout Jared McCain, Colorado’s Cody Williams and Oregon’s Kwame Evans.

All four are some of the most impactful freshmen in basketball and were featured in a new campaign across CELSIUS’s social media accounts. Ahead of March Madness, it’s CELSIUS’s first entry into the college basketball world. 

“Partnering with Juju Watkins, Jared McCain, Cody Williams, and Kwame Evans highlights CELSIUS’ growing and strong presence in college sports,” a CELSIUS spokesperson told On3. “These four freshman stars embody CELSIUS’ Live Fit mentality, and we could not be more excited to fuel them for upcoming games, March Madness, and beyond. Men’s and women’s college basketball is heating up, and we’re thrilled to be part of the fun with these incredible partners.”

These NIL deals also complement CELSIUS University, a paid program that gives students hands-on marketing experience. This past year, CELSIUS has increased its presence on college campuses massively– 200% growth of participating universities + 900% increase in student ambassadors nationwide.

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CELSIUS move into basketball makes sense

Multiple NIL brand experts told On3 they applaud the move by CELSIUS to expand into the basketball space. One expert called the football partnerships “savvy” and “smart” and the energy drink did an “excellent job” identifying college basketball partners, especially Watkins.

“Caitlin Clark and Angel Reese are the stars of today in women’s college basketball, but JuJu is quickly making it clear that she’s the star of tomorrow through her immediate impact at USC,” an NIL agent told On3.

Watkins was a five-star prospect in the Class of 2023 coming out of Chatsworth (California) Sierra Canyon. She was named the Naismith High School Player of the Year following her senior season. She’s currently the nation’s second-leading scorer at 26.5 points.

Watkins also became the first high school star to sign with Klutch Sports for NIL representation and has quickly built an NIL resume that rivals anybody in college sports. She was one of the first players to sign an NIL deal with sportswear and sneaker giant Nike, and she also has deals with Lids, Cash App and a partnership with House of Victory, a USC-focused collective.

Watkins has an On3 NIL Valuation of $212,000.

Others involved in deal have strong games

Williams, the No. 1 2023 recruit in the country according to On3, averages 15.1 points and 3.5 rebounds and is considered a top-10 NBA draft prospect already. His brother is Jalen Williams, the No. 12 pick of the 2022 NBA Draft. Williams’ NIL valuation is $407,000.

McCain became a household name long before he arrived in college thanks to his large social media presence. McCain carefully crafted a strong brand with more than 2 million followers on TikTok before the start of his senior year of high school. He was also one of the early success stories with NIL, announcing deals with Lemon Perfect and Champs Sports and even having his own pair of crocs. He’s averaging 12.2 points for the Blue Devils. McClain has a $1.1 million On3 NIL Valuation.

Evans, a former AAU star and four-star recruit out of Baltimore, is putting up 8.6 points for the Ducks. His On3 NIL Valuation is $223,000.

About the On3 NIL Valuation

The On3 NIL Valuation is the industry’s leading index that sets the standard market NIL value for high school and college athletes. A proprietary algorithm, the On3 NIL Valuation calculates an athlete’s NIL value using dynamic data points targeting three primary categories: performance, influence and exposure.

About On3 NIL Valuation, Brand Value, Roster Value

While the algorithm includes deal data, it does not act as a tracker of the value of NIL deals athletes have completed to date, nor does it set an athlete’s NIL valuation for their entire career.