RJ Davis, JuJu Watkins among NIL leaders over past year - ESPN

Basketball players continue to dominate name, image and likeness deals, with North Carolina's RJ Davis and USC's JuJu Watkins leading all male and female athletes in endorsements over the past 12 months, according to a new report from sponsorship data company SponsorUnited.

Davis leads all male athletes with 25 NIL deals, while Arizona punter Cash Peterman has 21, followed by 2024 Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter with 19. Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers and LSU basketball player Trace Young have 17 deals each.

Among female athletes, Watkins has 20 NIL deals, according to the report. The University of Miami's Haley and Hanna Cavinder have 18 combined, while UConn's Paige Bueckers and Oregon's Deja Kelly have 16 deals each. LSU's Flau'jae Johnson has 15 deals.

The NIL economy in college athletics has grown into a $1 billion business since its start almost four years ago, according to the report.

«Basketball consistently dominates NIL deals because it perfectly combines visibility, personality and cultural impact,» SponsorUnited CEO Bob Lynch told ESPN.

The new data underscored the growing marketability of women's college athletes, particularly in basketball, as women outpace men on social media in follower count and engagement.

«Players like Caitlin Clark and JuJu Watkins aren't just athletes, they're compelling storytellers whose careers are closely followed from high school through college,» Lynch said, adding that basketball culture «resonates on a massive scale.»

Bueckers, who led the Huskies to a Final Four berth, added about 3 million followers on her social media platforms in the past 12 months, one million more than any male athlete. Bueckers also had the highest audience engagement with her posts.

Eight of the