Jay Bilas takes shot at NCAA over NIL misconceptions

Jay Bilas didn’t hold back while speaking about the impact NIL has had on college athletics on the eve of the one-year anniversary of athletes finally being allowed to monetize their brand.

In an article written on ESPN, Bilas took a shot at the NCAA over NIL misconceptions, explaining how wrong the original detractors were regarding the issue.

“Critics of NIL predicted that only the top 1% of athletes would make any money. It was said that the star quarterback would benefit while the linemen blocking for him would be penniless and upset at the disparity. Coaches said that differing levels of compensation would lead to fights and dissension in the locker room because it just wasn’t fair unless everyone was getting the same amount in the NIL space. Of course, none of that was really true,” wrote Bilas. “Athletes, from star players in high-revenue sports to walk-ons to charismatic athletes in lesser-viewed sports, have found the NIL space to be quite lucrative.

“While there were and are questions about ‘fairness,’ whether it is truly fair for some athletes to make big money while others may not, there has never been such fairness in college athletics. In Division I athletics, less than 60% of athletes get scholarship money, and most sports have strict scholarship restrictions that do not allow the number of scholarships to approach roster limits.

“The very idea that the NCAA and its members really care about fairness is undercut by this undeniable fact.”

Evidently, Bilas is fed up with the NCAA claiming to care about fairness and competitive balance, and using it as a reason why NIL isn’t working. In fact, the ESPN college basketball analyst added that NIL has actually created more equity for college athletics, not less.

“An early fear among critics of NIL was that talent would be concentrated among the best and richest programs, and that competitive balance would be compromised,” wrote Bilas. “Early returns seem to show that is not the case. Principles of economics dictate that compensation for athletes is more likely to spread talent out among more schools than to concentrate talent among the very few. In fact, talent was more concentrated when athletes’ decisions were limited to best coach, best facilities, most exposure and the like.

“Now, just like for everyone else, money can be a factor in an athlete’s decision — but it is not the only factor.”

As you can see, Jay Bilas pulled zero punches in his defense of NIL as it pertains to the NCAA. While the former Duke star recognizes the system isn’t perfect yet, he believes it’s a heck of a lot better than the way things were in the past.