New Kentucky Basketball NIL Fund to launch tomorrow

Kentucky Basketball is taking another step forward when it comes to Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). Sources tell Matt Jones that the program will launch an official NIL fund tomorrow through which fans can donate and participate. Per Matt, John Calipari is expected to be part of the launch and the initiative has the backing of the administration, including athletics director Mitch Barnhart, a promising sign as NIL becomes more important than ever in college sports.

Here are the details from Matt:

Hearing an official Kentucky Basketball NIL Fund will be officially launched tomorrow for the purpose of making UK Basketball the top NIL destination in College Basketball. [John] Calipari and others part of the launch. Potential big deal for UK Basketball going forward.

As part of the new Kentucky Basketball NIL Fund, fans will be able to participate in ways that include donations but also being active in non-financial ways Don’t know all the details but sounds innovative and interesting to me. Should be exciting.

As a practical matter, I think the launch of the UK Basketball NIL Fund is an embracing of the NIL era for Kentucky in a way that is definitely needed I get the sense everyone around UK, from Calipari to Mitch to the administration is behind this and that’s a very good sign.

Matt Jones, Twitter

In June 2023, Calipari launched “The LaFamilia Club,” a fundraising effort to bring together the program’s top boosters and former stars in the NBA. Kentucky Basketball also participates in Commonwealth Causes, a charity-based NIL collective. The 15 Club is the most well-known University of Kentucky athletics collective but focuses mostly on football and women’s sports.

Last week, Mitch Barnhart released a video promoting Kentucky’s NIL efforts. Sounds like he’ll soon have another one to add to the list. With the SEC and NCAA Tournaments tipping off soon, the timing couldn’t be better.