At the intersection of Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) policy and cryptocurrency sits non-fungible tokens, or NFTs for short.
NIL allowed college athletes to monetize their brand image, and although the first year has been a messy and haphazard affair for the NCAA, NFTs could make it even more complicated.
Likened to trading cards by many, NFTs are digital photos or videos that are exclusively owned by the buyer. To some, this is a head-turning proposition. After all, how can one own something if everyone has access to it on the internet?
If cryptocurrency is the Wild West then NFTs represent the Gold Rush, with everyone looking for a way to cash in on something that doesn’t really exist. Although NFTs can be an image of anything, they’ve caught on particularly well within college and professional sports.
Take former Gonzaga University men’s basketball standout Jalen Suggs. An NFT of Suggs’ miraculous game-winner against UCLA in the 2021 Final Four could be minted as an NFT and priced according to its rarity and the player’s performance. Although an NFT of that particular moment doesn’t exist, technology company RECUR developed a first-of-its-kind college sports NFT destination called NFTU that allows users to buy, collect and re-sell NFTs for college sports.
NFTU’s “Tip Off” series marked the inaugural release of college basketball collectibles that included NFTs from 50 universities and 100+ former and current college players including Blake Griffin, Ja Morant, Drew Timme and Adam Morrison.
NFTs fall into four categories: common, premium, rare and ultra-rare. Currently, NFTU has NFTs for eight different GU players including a rare Suggs NFT and an ultra-rare Adam Morrison NFT, listed for $50 and $210, respectively. Suggs’ NFT represents his solid performance in the 2021 West Coast Conference championship game…
