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Message: [QUOTE="August_West, post: 4546327, member: 1047"] This is important stuff. Usually we as fans think we can affect the trajectory of our favorite team.....we do that via supporting them, and cheering like heck for them at home. On the Boneyard we think we can do it via mojo routines...etc...etc... We are entertained by them, but the most hardcore among us (and anyone crazy enough to post on this board regularly I consider hardcore) think we can help the team win. But we have now found ourselves at the beginning of a paradigm shift in the way College basketball operates. The NIL in conjunction with the transfer portal. This puts more power in Fans hands actually being able to tangibly help their team then I could ever have imagined seeing in my lifetime. On a go forward basis a major Pillar of successful programs will be what the universities NIL support is. Recruiting is a pillar, Coaching is a pillar. Now NIL/Portal is going to be another Leg of the table. Do we want Hurley to be able to get the best Portal players available when we need them? Im sure everyone's answer is yes. Do we want Hurley to get the top HS recruits possible? Again, no brainer, right? Well now we have the opportunity to not just sit back and armchair quarterback roster decisions. We have an opportunity AS FANS to influence them in a huge way. How? By making the NIL successful at our school. A robust NIL can be a tipping point to entice the players we want to get and the players we want to keep. It's the wild west out there right now. UConn has real good donor support, but we just don't have the plethora of billionaires that other huge P5 top athletic schools that we aspire to stay in the race with have available. In a few cases they are one man NIL machines. A "bottom up" grassroots style level of support is desperately needed in CT to aid in the building of our overall NIL portfolio. This will become more important every day for the rest of time. (or until the NCAA goes belly up, lol) I applaud Chief for bringing this stuff to the boneyards attention and the efforts he has put in on this front. Say what you want about Chief but he is doing his part to help us. If you are going to have a meal anyway somewhere, or have drinks with a couple friends or whatever and are a UConn fan, why not do it at a restaurant/Bar that is supporting our NIL? We can make a huge difference here. This is just starting, we need to show up so that MORE events like this are created. The worst scenario is bad turnouts that make Business owners less motivated to do these. Think about it. Not just in this specific case, but any time and all the time. We are actually empowered now to [I]directly[/I] help the team. Short term and long term. Let's not blow it. Because if we do, it's on us. [/QUOTE]

Verification: First name of men's bb coach