Top five On3 NIL Valuations entering ACC Tournament
This has not been the ACC’s strongest season of basketball, but the conference is back in Greensboro, North Carolina, for this season’s tournament.
Duke, Miami, NC State, Pitt and Virginia appear to have their NCAA Tournament berths locked up. Winning a game or two this week definitely will not hurt, though.
And then there is North Carolina. The Tar Heels made it to the national title game in Year 1 under Hubert Davis. But despite its success last season, North Carolina is in a must-win situation entering the ACC tournament. The preseason No. 1 team is sitting on the bubble right now. Winning the conference title is obviously the simplest path to the NCAAs, but the Heels need an extended stay in Greensboro.
Despite a down year, the ACC still has some of the top names in college basketball. On3 is breaking down the top five On3 NIL Valuations entering this seaons’s ACC Tournament.
1. North Carolina’s Armando Bacot
Position: Forward
On3 NIL Valuation: $551,000
On3 College Basketball NIL Rank: No. 11
Social Media Followers: 245K
Safe to say Armando Bacot is one of the most recognizable figures in college basketball following last year’s March Madness. The center registered double-doubles in all six of North Carolina‘s NCAA tournament games last spring. He’s continued at that clip this year, averaging 16.5 points and 10.8 rebounds. He’s had 10 20-plus point games, too. Last season’s success has made him valuable to countless brands. There’s no doubt that played a role in his decision to return for another season. His first deal was a part in the hit Netflix show Outer Banks, appearing in season three, which dropped last month. The opportunities have not stopped there, though. He became a face of NIL campaigns for Rhoback and MoneyLion. Bacot also has a partnership with ZIPS Car Wash, appearing in a video while representing the North Carolina brand. His coffee order was on display at Dunkin’ in January, too. If Bacot wants to end his career with a trip to the Big Dance, he’s going to have to perform this week in Greensboro.
2. Duke’s Kyle Filipowski
Position: Center
On3 NIL Valuation: $546,000
On3 College Basketball NIL Rank: No. 13
Social Media Followers: 36K
After winning ACC Rookie of the Week countless times this season, Kyle Filipowski was named a first-team All-ACC performer as well as the league’s Newcomer of the Year. The former five-star recruit and No. 1 player in the 2022 class has not missed a beat making the jump to the college level. The 7-footer is averaging 15.0 points and 9.2 rebounds. Working with Excel Sports Management, he’s kept the main focus on basketball. But in January, he announced one of his first public partnerships with Cuts Clothing. His brand has only grown this season. With a deep run in the tournament a possibility, more brands are going to want to align with Filipowski. Plus, he’s expected to be taken in the first round of this year’s NBA draft.
3. North Carolina’s Caleb Love
Position: Guard
On3 NIL Valuation: $371,000
On3 College Basketball NIL Rank: No. 21
Social Media Followers: 415K
Caleb Love was the fourth North Carolina stater to announce his return for another season last April. From there, he started to build a strong name, image and likeness resume. He signed with Priority Sports & Entertainment in June. He held a Hoophall Hangout at the Basketball Hall of Fame this summer. A member of Outback’s NIL program, he also made an appearance this summer at Damian Lillard’s Formula Zero. And he’s made strategic NIL decisions, too. In August, he landed a new mattress from Sleep On Latex. He announced his decision to return for another season on TikTok, drawing attention to his account; it has 31,500 followers. He spent time this offseason with NBA skills trainer Drew Hanlen in Los Angeles. The work has led to Love averaging 16.7 points and 3.7 assists a game. If North Carolina does make it into the tournament, he won’t have trouble finding endorsement deals.
4. Duke’s Jeremy Roach
Position: Guard
On3 NIL Valuation: $267,000
On3 College Basketball NIL Rank: No. 27
Social Media Followers: 69K
A former four-star recruit, Jeremy Roach has developed into a veteran guard for Duke. The 6-foot-2, 180-pounder is averaging 13.1 points and 3.2 assists entering the ACC tournament. The lone returning contributor from last season’s Final Four team, the junior is the leader of Jon Scheyer’s first team at Duke. For all the on-court success, Roach has also built a brand off the court, launching an apparel brand. He appeared in a promotion for BOA Nutrition next to Bacot in January, filming a commercial. He is also an ambassador for Force Factor nutrition supplements. If Duke makes a deep run in March, it is going to come with Roach leading the way.
5. Florida State’s Matthew Cleveland
Position: Guard
On3 NIL Valuation: $227,000
On3 College Basketball NIL Rank: No. 34
Social Media Followers: 15K
Florida State enters the ACC tournament with a 9-22 record, the worst mark in the Leonard Hamilton era. But Matthew Cleveland has been a bright spot. The sophomore guard has built on a strong freshman season, averaging 14 points and 7.6 rebounds in 34.1 minutes per game. The ACC Sixth Man of the Year last season, he’s become a starter this year. He has 11 double-doubles this season. While his on-court presence has jumped this year, so, too, has his NIL value. Cleveland recently promoted Uber on Instagram.
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.
The On3 NIL Valuation accounts for an athlete’s roster value and brand value. Roster value is the value an athlete has by being a member of his or her team at his or her school, which factors into the role of NIL collectives. Brand value factors in an athlete’s personal brand and the value it could bring to regional and national brands outside of the scope of NIL collectives.
The On3 NIL Valuation is publicly available. Performance, Influence, and Exposure ratings along with the athlete’s personal Brand Value Index and Roster Value Index are available only to the athlete in the “Athlete Verified” private dashboard on the On3 Athlete Network.