Chou is determined to use her NIL opportunities for more than just a quick paycheck.Series Debuts November 20, exclusively on ESPN+Įxplores Unique Bond Between LeBron James And Longtime Friends-Turned-Business Partners Maverick Carter, Rich Paul and Randy Mims The causes of female empowerment and body positivity were crucial for Chou, who took pride in being a rare female Asian American athlete in college basketball and advocated against anti-Asian hate during the pandemic. It followed her first deal with Champion, for which she appeared alongside fellow UCLA stars Maya Brady and Norah Flatley in a campaign with a tagline aimed at female athletes to “be your own champion.” The latter was a partnership with Sports Illustrated to promote a new swimsuit line intended to empower women to feel comfortable in their bodies. She never thought that would be enough to turn her into a swimsuit model.Ĭhou, who graduated last year after averaging 8.8 points and 3.3 rebounds during her three-year UCLA career, scored prominent NIL deals with Champion and Forever 21. The former UCLA guard can spin a basketball on her finger, and she can put her hand on her hip with a stern expression. “I don’t want to be a walking billboard,” Harward said. With a master’s in marketing, she understood authenticity was a key part of any partnership. If she wasn’t already advocating for the brands privately, she wouldn’t do so publicly. Harward was intentional about whom to work with. She got regular shipments of water and was featured on the brand’s Instagram page. A longtime lover of Aquahydrate’s bottled water, the two-time NCAA champion reached out to the brand for sponsorship. She reached out to Raising Canes for a one-time deal at last year’s Manhattan Beach Open. Scoles’ partner at USC, Hailey Harward, started by identifying brands she already used.
“Maybe they’re not going to get paid per se while they’re in college, they may be able to balance the pay gap coming out afterwards.” “As a corporate recruiter, I’m looking at this saying these are real life skills that I want,” said Steve Simmons, co-founder of NIL Partners, a company that provides NIL education to athletes, athletic departments and corporate sponsors. She and her family, which includes her older sister and mother, realized the immediate benefits of playing in high school didn’t outweigh what could be generation-defining money, if handled correctly. The opportunities became so lucrative that when the Kansas City, Mo., native realized Missouri did not allow high school athletes to profit from NIL deals, she considered simply not playing high school basketball at all before going to UCLA. With a growing social media brand, she felt ready. When conversations about allowing college athletes to benefit from NIL deals began, Williams was confident it would trickle down to high school athletes. Then she started showing off her sneaker-loving fashion sense, her friends and her faith. She and her trainer were just posting basketball videos. Williams didn’t set out to build a brand on social media. Williams, with about 622,000 followers, has an 18.5% engagement rate. 1 to June 1, Bueckers averaged 104,225 likes per Instagram post, roughly a 10.4% engagement rate with her 1 million followers. She appeared in a Spalding commercial alongside NBA star Damian Lillard last year, is an ambassador for Lillard’s Move Insoles, and is sponsored by athletic apparel company Gymshark.Īlthough Williams’ combined following on Instagram and TikTok is still fewer than 1 million, her engagement - a key metric for companies evaluating sponsorship potential - dwarfs Connecticut star Paige Bueckers, who was the first college athlete signed with Gatorade. The 20th-ranked player in her class according to ESPN, Williams was one of the first high school athletes to sign an NIL deal when she did so last year. junior national team member and committed to UCLA in March 2021.
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