Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
The NIL Era has created a ton of headaches for teams that have seen talented players leave for another program that offered them a sizeable bag. The men’s basketball team at Sam Houston State lost star guard Lamar Wilkerson to Indiana in the wake of his third season with the Bearkats, but they also got a sizeable chunk of cash after he decided to give them a parting gift.
Most college sports fans agreed student-athletes should have been able to profit off their name, image, and likeness before the NCAA ruling that allowed them to start doing exactly that in 2021. However, that development had a dramatic impact on a landscape that has forced many programs to deal with a revolving door of talent as many players (understandably) try to land the biggest payday they can.
Close to 2,700 men’s basketball players entered the transfer portal following the conclusion of the most recent season. That includes Lamar Wilkerson, the guard who averaged 20.5 points per game during his third year at Sam Houston State before heading to Indiana as a senior.
Kentucky also courted Wilkerson in what was positioned as a bit of a bidding war between the Hooisers and the Wildcats, and while it’s unclear how big of an NIL deal he ended up receiving from the former, it was rumored to be well north of $1 million—a claim that doesn’t seem too far-fetched based on how much he gave his old school.
Lamar Wilkerson donated a sizeable chunk of change to Sam Houston after transferring to Indiana
Wilkerson is expected to make an immediate impact in Bloomington as he gears up to seemingly cap off a college career that began at Three Rivers College, a JUCO program in Missouri, before heading to Sam Houston for a three-year stint.
The guard recently sat down with Jeff Goodman from Field of 68 for an interview where the reporter noted Wilkerson gave “six figures” before asking him to shed some light on his rationale for doing so.
Wilkerson confirmed that was the case while explaining what motivated him to go that route, saying:
“I did it out of love, man. I did it out of love for Coach Mudge, for just Sam Houston. I’d been there for three years, so it was home for me. I got comfortable there, I built a family with a lot of people, a lot of donors and everything.
So, I just gave back because I felt like I want to see their program strive. I want to keep seeing them get better over time. So I was willing to help.”
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