Several Big Ten coaches and Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany were asked about California's recently passed Senate Bill 206 that allows student-athletes to be compensated for their names, likeness and images.
Indiana head coach Archie Miller gave an extensive answer that referred back to his days at NC State.
Just a few days after California governor Gavin Newsom passed Senate Bill 206 into law, allowing student-athletes to benefit from their name, likeness and image, the Big Ten Conference hosted its basketball media day at the Hilton Rosemont in Chicago on Wednesday.
As each Big Ten coach made his way to the podium in front of the attending media, most of them were asked about the bill, the hottest topic surrounding national college basketball this week, and Indiana head coach Archie Miller gave one of the most extensive answers of the coaches asked.
“The big thing is today’s day in age, if you’re not evolving, if you’re not forward-thinking, you’re standing in cement,” Miller said. “The days of what was once always the way to do things, in 2020, maybe isn’t always the way to do it. There’s a lot of bright people in a lot of rooms that get together and make the best decisions possible. Hopefully, No. 1 is to take care of the student-athletes in the best way possible, protect the game, protect the universities and to continue on with an unbelievable product.”
Several other coaches and Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany were asked the same questions, and Delany addressed the issue in further detail than the coaches. He was solid in his “core belief” that the NCAA should not offer incentives outside the current compensation, and Delany drew a parallel between pay-for-play and student-athletes being paid for their likeness, saying he didn’t see much of a difference between the two.
"My view is that I'll be out in 85 days and it will be discussed," said Delany, whose tenure as commissioner is finished Jan. 1, 2020.
Michigan State head coach Tom Izzo also touched on the bill, explaining how he had his sports information director gather nine articles about the bill and felt like there were nine different opinions expressed in the articles. He went on to walk the line between the two sides but was adamant about government being left out of the process.
"I sure as hell don't think it's a politician's job to get in on this,” Izzo said.
Miller, who played for NC State between 1998 and 2002, explained that he understands what it’s like to be a student-athlete and what it’s like to play on TV and be in newspapers but referred to his initial comment about changing times when he said he never thought about “who was making money” in his playing days.
When asked how an incentives model should be organized, Miller said it was out of his knowledge at the moment, but he did align with other coaches and Delany about whether it should be a state-by-state governance or a national jurisdiction.
“That’s a little bigger than me,” Miller said. “I would say what you’d like is for everyone to have an equal say. However it’s going to work out, it needs to be governed – needs to be looked at – as a whole sale, not as an individual thing. We’ve got a while to figure it out. I know the fact that it’s on the forefront right now means there’s going to be some really important people, they’re going to have their say and do the best they can.”
The California bill isn’t in effect until January 2023.
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