South Carolina's Aliyah Boston uses NIL to host UA Next camp

South Carolina women’s basketball star Aliyah Boston is using NIL to host the UA Next basketball camp starting Friday in St. Thomas the U.S. Virgin Islands. The camp is being held in association with Under Armour, who Boston signed a NIL deal with in April.

Boston, a native of St. Thomas, said hosting the camp and having Under Armour provide equipment for those growing up on the island is a big deal. Each camp attendee will receive athletic apparel and shoes.

“Working with Under Armour is a huge honor,” Boston said in a statement. “It means so much to me because it’s a brand I’ve been wearing for years — both for cross-training and when I’m on the court. With Under Armour, I’m most excited to continue building and growing the women’s basketball community. I’m really looking forward to giving more young girls access to the sport at the community level.”

Aliyah Boston’s camp is only possible because of NIL. Without that, she wouldn’t be allowed to host camps like this one.  Boston was the consensus national player of the year who led South Carolina’s women’s basketball team to the NCAA Tournament championship this season. 

According to a release, 50 middle school and high school basketball players will compete in the camp with 25 of the players from St. Thomas. Another 25 are from St. Croix, which is also in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Along with Boston, players will receive instruction from coaches and players from the mainland.

“The camp is just really special,” Boston told the Virgin Islands Daily News. “I’m just going to experience this camp, and I know it’s going to go well. If I think anything needs to change or anything for the future, then that’s something I’ll definitely take notes on it. But, I’m just excited.”

Boston would like to see the UA Next camp expand, possibly to other locations such as Columbia, S.C., where the University of South Carolina is located. But she said she definitely wants to keep the camp going in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

“Oh, most definitely,” Boston told the Virginia Islands Daily News. “I definitely want to do this in St. Thomas, though. This is the first priority because this is where I came from. I just want to be able to help and give back to this community.”

Aliyah Boston and NIL

As one of the most talented and recognizable women’s basketball players in the country, Aliyah Boston has proven that she has substantial NIL value. Along with Under Armour, numerous companies have worked out NIL deals with Boston. For example, Boston has NIL deals with Bojangles and Crocs. She is also represented by Klutch Sports, who help put these deals together for her.