Desmond Bane Wants College Basketball to Add a Salary Cap

Add Desmond Bane to the growing list of people who think college sports should have a salary cap. 

The Magic shooting guard brings a different perspective than others, though. 

“I think NIL’s a great thing,” Bane, who serves as TCU’s chief basketball officer, told Front Office Sports. “I think players deserve to get paid. All the work they’re putting in, all the money they bring in to the school. I think they definitely deserve a slice of the pie. But with that being said I think there needs to be some sort of cap, so teams all kind of have somewhat of a level playing field. 

“Whether it’s $10 million, $20 million, whatever the number is, so donors know exactly how much money needs to be given each year, coaches know how much money they have to spend each year and you can start building out an archetype from that. Once they get the reins on it, it’s already a great thing, but it will really settle in.” 

Bane was named chief basketball officer at his alma mater in June. He’s played under a salary cap in the NBA and has had his own career impacted by it after being traded from Memphis to Orlando last year. Bane was the first Grizzlies player to be traded from the team’s young core, which also included Jaren Jackson Jr. and Ja Morant. 

Bane joined a growing list of players with front-office roles at their alma mater, including Trae Young, Stephen Curry, and Terance Mann, and has also donated to the school’s NIL efforts, joining stars such as James Harden, who donated to his own alma mater, Arizona State. 

“[TCU] coach [Jamie] Dixon and I have been in lockstep talking about this for like two years,” Bane said. “So it’s been an ongoing process.”

While some of these front office titles have been more ceremonial, Bane said the role comes with a few responsibilities and he hopes to add more in the coming years. While the 28-year-old wasn’t able to capitalize on NIL during his own college career, he’s spoken to the players about money management, has educated the coaches on player development trends in the NBA, and has tried to help with the program’s locker room culture. He also recently hosted the team at his house in Texas for a team-bonding experience.