• Loading stock data...
Monday, September 15, 2025
Tuned In is Almost Sold Out! Limited Tickets Remain!

The Biggest Star at the Men’s Final Four Mostly Missed the NIL Gold Rush

  • NIL laws prevent players on international visas from making deals.
  • Edey is aware changing the law can’t happen overnight.
Robert Deutsch-USA TODAY Sports

Zach Edey’s Purdue career will end after Monday’s national championship game against Connecticut, and he has had two consecutive National Player of the Year awards, a Final Four run, and the school is already retiring his No. 15 jersey. 

And he’s barely profited off it. 

While NC State’s DJ Burns piled up NIL deals along the way of his team’s Cinderella run to the Final Four, Edey has not become a legend at the bank. 

“I feel like I’m missing out on a lot of money,” Edey said at the Final Four ahead of Purdue’s win that clinched a title game berth.

Edey is Canadian and attending Purdue on a visa, which means he is legally unable to make money off NIL deals that take place in the U.S. But there are exceptions. He is able to make NIL deals outside the country and also off his jersey sales. 

It’s unlikely Edey will be college basketball’s last international star as the game continues to become more global. Many NBA stars are foreign such as Nikola Jokić, Luka Dončić, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Jamal Murray, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The latter two both played college basketball at Kentucky and would have faced the same problem Edey has. 

“I hope they change it in the future,” Edey said. “I obviously have lost out on a lot of money this year. At the end of the day, it needs to change, for sure. I understand kind of the legal process. It takes a while.

“It’s not like it’s an NCAA rule. It’s an American law. Anytime you try to go change that, I understand it takes a while. But I do think it needs to change.”

Matt Painter, Edey’s coach at Purdue, backed his star player when discussing NIL and said it showed how far it’s come in its short existence and how far it still has to go. 

“We have to get some parameters around what we’re actually doing and what’s actually going on and not try to just do something so we can stay out of the courts,” Painter said. “That’s all things [that] are happening because for a long time, what’s the product? The product is the player. They’re viewed as amateurs, but they weren’t amateurs.

“There’s a lot of money generated through what they’re doing. Name, image, and likeness needed to happen. We just got to get some guardrails around it to be able to get there.”

Linkedin
Whatsapp
Copy Link
Link Copied
Link Copied

What to Read

Mar 4, 2025; Washington, DC, USA; House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-La., speaks with Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene, R-Ga., ahead of President Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on March 4, 2025.

House Republicans Delay SCORE Act Vote Tentatively Planned for Next Week

They didn’t believe they had enough votes to pass the bill.
NFL Congress
exclusive

College Sports ‘House of Cards’: Republicans, Lobbyists Work to Secure Votes to..

Several House Republicans criticized the SCORE Act on social media.
The cover of the College Football 25 video game.
exclusive

Group That Facilitated NIL Deal for Football Video Game Now Says It’s..

EA offered $1,500 and no royalties; it also deleted an opt-out clause.

Oklahoma-Michigan Was a Battle of Dueling QB NIL Philosophies

Bryce Underwood got into a heated exchange with his teammate.

Featured Today

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - APRIL 19: A detailed view of the MLB Debut patch on the jersey of Patrick Monteverde #44 of the Miami Marlins prior to game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on April 19, 2025 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The Tiny Jersey Patch at the Center of the MLB Rookie Card..

Autographed cards containing a piece of baseball history have upended the market.
September 11, 2025

Eagles-Chiefs Super Bowl Rematch Could Set More NFL Ratings Records

Fox will nationally televise Sunday afternoon’s matchup.
September 10, 2025

ESPN’s ‘MNF’ Ratings Up 8% As NFL Surges to Strong Start

ESPN posts its second-best Week 1 “Monday Night Football” audience.
Sep 7, 2025; Orchard Park, New York, USA; Buffalo Bills fans react during the fourth quarter against the Baltimore Ravens at Highmark Stadium.
September 9, 2025

As Bills Ascend, Their Next Frontier Lies in Canada

Buffalo and the powerful Canadian entity MLSE come together in a new pact.

College Football’s Costly Start for Virginia Tech, UCLA: Coaches Out

UCLA and Virginia Tech fire their coaches while Notre Dame slumps badly.
Feb 17, 2024; Boise, Idaho, USA; Fresno State Bulldogs guard Jalen Weaver (5) during the first half against the Boise State Broncos at ExtraMile Arena.
September 10, 2025

NCAA Bans 3 Basketball Players for Violating Betting Rules Last Season

The former San Jose State and Fresno State players have lost eligibility.
Jan 25, 2023; Langley, British Columbia, CAN; Highlights from the CHL Kubota Top Prospects game at the Langley Events Centre
September 10, 2025

NCAA Hockey Scouts Denied Passes for Crucial Recruiting League

The CHL won’t welcome scouts on passes: “It comes across as petty.”
Sponsored

How World Series Champ Dexter Fowler Became a Premier League Team Owner

Dexter Fowler discusses navigating retirement and embracing new roles as an owner & investor.
Sep 6, 2025; Gainesville, Florida, USA; South Florida Bulls place kicker Nico Gramatica (7), South Florida Bulls long snapper Turner McLaughlin (48) and teammates celebrate after a game against the Florida Gators at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
September 8, 2025

USF Is the Newest Financial Underdog in the AP Top 25

USF’s athletic department brings in half the amount Florida does.
Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Julian Sayin (10) and linebacker C.J. Hicks (11) shake hands while leaving the field following the NCAA football game at Ohio Stadium on Aug. 30, 2025. Ohio State won 14-7
September 6, 2025

How Ohio State Rebuilt Its NIL Strategy in the Rev-Share Era

The Buckeyes are staying “aggressive” in the new NIL landscape.
September 5, 2025

NIL Go Corrects Its Data From $80M in Deals Cleared to $35M,..

It’s another bump in the rocky rollout of the new NIL clearinghouse.
September 5, 2025

NCAA Headed Toward Single Football Transfer-Portal Window

A new winter window would run Jan. 2–11.