Post by Marco on Feb 29, 2024 4:06:17 GMT
UConn’s Aaliyah Edwards, Nika Mühl face NIL challenges while deciding on WNBA future
Maggie Vanoni
STORRS — Aaliyah Edwards signed the first significant name, image and likeness deal of her career when she joined Adidas Canada on Monday.
But because of her status as an international student while playing for the UConn women’s basketball team, she could not speak about the deal when answering questions from reporters Tuesday.
That's because she is on a student visa and cannot profit from or partake in NIL activity while on United States soil. International student-athletes can accept passive income — such as when UConn sells jerseys with its international players’ names on them — but they cannot make deals, do photo shoots or promote companies while in the U.S.
Edwards' deal with Adidas, first announced by the company in Canada, is one of the most notable endorsement deals for an international student-athlete in NIL’s three-year history. While it is expected to carry over into her professional career, which could begin in the WNBA this summer, the deal will provide Edwards an opportunity to profit from an international brand as a college athlete.
International athletes such as Edwards can only engage in NIL activity when they are physically back in their home countries. During past summers when the team was on break, UConn players Edwards, Dorka Juhász of Hungary and Nika Mühl of Croatia profited off their name, image and likeness while at home.
Edwards hosted a camp in Canada while Juhász and Mühl earned money by working with Cameo, a platform that gives fans an opportunity to request a personalized video message from athletes and celebrities in exchange for a set price. Mühl posted a deadline for fans to request videos before she returned to Connecticut for preseason conditioning.
Meanwhile their U.S.-born teammates are cashing in freely through NIL. UConn players have an array of deals: Caroline Ducharme and Aubrey Griffin work with Wells Fargo, Ice Brady has worked with Dunkin, and Ayanna Patterson worked with Haven Hot Chicken and Macy’s.
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There also the outliers who are estimated to be making six to seven figures in NIL. Azzi Fudd works with Bose, Chipotle, Buick, Steph Curry’s SC30 brand, BioSteel and more. Paige Bueckers’ resume is highlighted not only by a partnership with Gatorade but one with Nike too. She also works with Chegg, Bose and StockX.
UConn women's basketball senior Aaliyah Edwards will return to Canada for her homecoming game on Dec. 20.
UConn women's basketball senior Aaliyah Edwards will return to Canada for her homecoming game on Dec. 20.
UConn athletics / Contributed photo
Players have also worked local sports camps and made appearances — everyone that is except for international student-athletes.
The lack of opportunity for international student-athletes has been an ongoing issue, one highlighted by former UConn men's star Adama Sanogo in the NCAA Tournament last year. Soon after Sanogo's teammates and coach Dan Hurley talked about the lack of NIL opportunities, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., questioned Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas about the issue, using Sanogo and Edwards as examples.
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In October, Blumenthal and Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., introduced a bill that would allow international college athletes access to NIL opportunities while at school.
Other NIL guidelines and rules continue to change or are challenged in court. Earlier this month, a federal judge in Tennessee prohibited the NCAA from disciplining athletes or university boosters for making NIL deals while an athlete is in the recruiting or transfer portal process.
This still-new opportunity for athletes continues to be in a state of flux.
“While they were writing down on the paper, ‘You cannot use this,’ as they wrote each word, it was becoming more obsolete with each word they wrote. To the point that by the time they finished that sentence, 90% of the coaches in this country had already figured out they can't enforce that,” Geno Auriemma said. “The NCAA people out there always do this. They come up with a rule (and it) hasn't been thought out. Then after everybody breaks the rule, and they can't enforce it, then they make it legal. …. The NCAA will always do the right thing after they've exhausted all the other possibilities.”
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An international student-athlete can’t simply get a work visa instead of a F-1 'student' visa. There are complications and processes that take time and can only be changed by Federal lawmakers. And while international non-athletes on student visas are allowed to hold on-campus jobs, that’s not the case with international student-athletes.
“Is there a way that this can be an exception made?” Auriemma said. “I understand why they want to limit the number of work visas. One hundred percent, you can't just give that to anybody for whatever reason you want to give it to them. …
“When we had Svetlana (Abrosimova, from Russia) for instance, there were a lot of people that were volunteering to hire her during summers or doing semester breaks and unfortunately, they couldn't take advantage of it.”
Edwards' deal with Adidas will apparently operate within the guideline of U.S. immigration law and NIL rules. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed.
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An Adidas spokesperson told CT Insider, "All protocols were adhered to and confirming that Aaliyah returned to Canada throughout the negotiation process and that it is a Canada-based deal. As the first Canadian to receive an NIL agreement, Aaliyah joins our impressive local roster of Canadian female athletes and represents our commitment to creating equitable and inclusive opportunities for women in sports. We remain dedicated to empowering female athletes across Canada to reach their full potential."
Like Bueckers' deal with Nike, Edwards' partnership with Adidas will likely follow her into the WNBA. Would the opportunity to earn money freely motivate Edwards to declare for this year's WNBA Draft? Mühl also has the opportunity to earn money from endorsements as a professional player.
Both insist that's not why they came to Storrs.
UConn's Nika Muhl (10) reacts during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against North Carolina State, Sunday, Nov. 12, 2023, in Raleigh, N.C.
UConn's Nika Muhl (10) reacts during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against North Carolina State, Sunday, Nov. 12, 2023, in Raleigh, N.C.
Karl B. DeBlaker/Associated Press
“For me, that's not really a deciding factor,” Edwards said. “I came here to play basketball, that’s what I signed up to do four years ago.”
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Added Mühl: “It doesn't really impact me that much because I've never had that initially. So, it's not like I had it and it was taken away from me. … I feel like when you're here, especially at UConn, it's not about how much money you make. It's not about NIL. It's not about what else you can do. I feel like everybody's priority here is basketball. The legacy here. The things that you learn are so much more than the money you can get.
“… It's not about money here. It's about experience. It's about the relationships. It's about the connections. It's about the people and it's about winning and just like being a part of this greatness. Just that itself is so much more worth than any money from anybody.”
Both Edwards and Mühl have a choice to make in the next couple months: They can stay at UConn for a fifth-year or begin the next chapters of their careers in the WNBA. They each have an extra year of eligibility remaining after 2023-24 due to the NCAA granting an added year due to the impact of the pandemic on athletes. Yet, both are talented enough to get picked in the 2024 WNBA Draft.
While Mühl is getting “close” to making her decision public, Edwards has told the media she is going to wait until the end of the collegiate season to make and announce her future plans.
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“It's really an undecided decision for me right now,” said Edwards, who’s projected as a top-five draft pick in 2024. “… I feel like some days I’m like, ‘I want to do this.’ Some days: ‘I want to do that.’ ”
Maggie Vanoni
STORRS — Aaliyah Edwards signed the first significant name, image and likeness deal of her career when she joined Adidas Canada on Monday.
But because of her status as an international student while playing for the UConn women’s basketball team, she could not speak about the deal when answering questions from reporters Tuesday.
That's because she is on a student visa and cannot profit from or partake in NIL activity while on United States soil. International student-athletes can accept passive income — such as when UConn sells jerseys with its international players’ names on them — but they cannot make deals, do photo shoots or promote companies while in the U.S.
Edwards' deal with Adidas, first announced by the company in Canada, is one of the most notable endorsement deals for an international student-athlete in NIL’s three-year history. While it is expected to carry over into her professional career, which could begin in the WNBA this summer, the deal will provide Edwards an opportunity to profit from an international brand as a college athlete.
International athletes such as Edwards can only engage in NIL activity when they are physically back in their home countries. During past summers when the team was on break, UConn players Edwards, Dorka Juhász of Hungary and Nika Mühl of Croatia profited off their name, image and likeness while at home.
Edwards hosted a camp in Canada while Juhász and Mühl earned money by working with Cameo, a platform that gives fans an opportunity to request a personalized video message from athletes and celebrities in exchange for a set price. Mühl posted a deadline for fans to request videos before she returned to Connecticut for preseason conditioning.
Meanwhile their U.S.-born teammates are cashing in freely through NIL. UConn players have an array of deals: Caroline Ducharme and Aubrey Griffin work with Wells Fargo, Ice Brady has worked with Dunkin, and Ayanna Patterson worked with Haven Hot Chicken and Macy’s.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
There also the outliers who are estimated to be making six to seven figures in NIL. Azzi Fudd works with Bose, Chipotle, Buick, Steph Curry’s SC30 brand, BioSteel and more. Paige Bueckers’ resume is highlighted not only by a partnership with Gatorade but one with Nike too. She also works with Chegg, Bose and StockX.
UConn women's basketball senior Aaliyah Edwards will return to Canada for her homecoming game on Dec. 20.
UConn women's basketball senior Aaliyah Edwards will return to Canada for her homecoming game on Dec. 20.
UConn athletics / Contributed photo
Players have also worked local sports camps and made appearances — everyone that is except for international student-athletes.
The lack of opportunity for international student-athletes has been an ongoing issue, one highlighted by former UConn men's star Adama Sanogo in the NCAA Tournament last year. Soon after Sanogo's teammates and coach Dan Hurley talked about the lack of NIL opportunities, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., questioned Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas about the issue, using Sanogo and Edwards as examples.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
In October, Blumenthal and Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., introduced a bill that would allow international college athletes access to NIL opportunities while at school.
Other NIL guidelines and rules continue to change or are challenged in court. Earlier this month, a federal judge in Tennessee prohibited the NCAA from disciplining athletes or university boosters for making NIL deals while an athlete is in the recruiting or transfer portal process.
This still-new opportunity for athletes continues to be in a state of flux.
“While they were writing down on the paper, ‘You cannot use this,’ as they wrote each word, it was becoming more obsolete with each word they wrote. To the point that by the time they finished that sentence, 90% of the coaches in this country had already figured out they can't enforce that,” Geno Auriemma said. “The NCAA people out there always do this. They come up with a rule (and it) hasn't been thought out. Then after everybody breaks the rule, and they can't enforce it, then they make it legal. …. The NCAA will always do the right thing after they've exhausted all the other possibilities.”
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
An international student-athlete can’t simply get a work visa instead of a F-1 'student' visa. There are complications and processes that take time and can only be changed by Federal lawmakers. And while international non-athletes on student visas are allowed to hold on-campus jobs, that’s not the case with international student-athletes.
“Is there a way that this can be an exception made?” Auriemma said. “I understand why they want to limit the number of work visas. One hundred percent, you can't just give that to anybody for whatever reason you want to give it to them. …
“When we had Svetlana (Abrosimova, from Russia) for instance, there were a lot of people that were volunteering to hire her during summers or doing semester breaks and unfortunately, they couldn't take advantage of it.”
Edwards' deal with Adidas will apparently operate within the guideline of U.S. immigration law and NIL rules. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
An Adidas spokesperson told CT Insider, "All protocols were adhered to and confirming that Aaliyah returned to Canada throughout the negotiation process and that it is a Canada-based deal. As the first Canadian to receive an NIL agreement, Aaliyah joins our impressive local roster of Canadian female athletes and represents our commitment to creating equitable and inclusive opportunities for women in sports. We remain dedicated to empowering female athletes across Canada to reach their full potential."
Like Bueckers' deal with Nike, Edwards' partnership with Adidas will likely follow her into the WNBA. Would the opportunity to earn money freely motivate Edwards to declare for this year's WNBA Draft? Mühl also has the opportunity to earn money from endorsements as a professional player.
Both insist that's not why they came to Storrs.
UConn's Nika Muhl (10) reacts during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against North Carolina State, Sunday, Nov. 12, 2023, in Raleigh, N.C.
UConn's Nika Muhl (10) reacts during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against North Carolina State, Sunday, Nov. 12, 2023, in Raleigh, N.C.
Karl B. DeBlaker/Associated Press
“For me, that's not really a deciding factor,” Edwards said. “I came here to play basketball, that’s what I signed up to do four years ago.”
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
Added Mühl: “It doesn't really impact me that much because I've never had that initially. So, it's not like I had it and it was taken away from me. … I feel like when you're here, especially at UConn, it's not about how much money you make. It's not about NIL. It's not about what else you can do. I feel like everybody's priority here is basketball. The legacy here. The things that you learn are so much more than the money you can get.
“… It's not about money here. It's about experience. It's about the relationships. It's about the connections. It's about the people and it's about winning and just like being a part of this greatness. Just that itself is so much more worth than any money from anybody.”
Both Edwards and Mühl have a choice to make in the next couple months: They can stay at UConn for a fifth-year or begin the next chapters of their careers in the WNBA. They each have an extra year of eligibility remaining after 2023-24 due to the NCAA granting an added year due to the impact of the pandemic on athletes. Yet, both are talented enough to get picked in the 2024 WNBA Draft.
While Mühl is getting “close” to making her decision public, Edwards has told the media she is going to wait until the end of the collegiate season to make and announce her future plans.
Advertisement
Article continues below this ad
“It's really an undecided decision for me right now,” said Edwards, who’s projected as a top-five draft pick in 2024. “… I feel like some days I’m like, ‘I want to do this.’ Some days: ‘I want to do that.’ ”