JMI NIL Deal Hinders Elite Basketball Recruiting Amidst Leadership Uncertainty

Key Quotes

"this is an issue sponsored by the t j smith law office call t j he'll make 'em pay it has been uh a disaster for the workforce of kentucky sports radio they're just falling like flies in the last few days what's going on you know ryan he had a wreck so he's okay but he's out drew can't move because of his back the back per capita injuries for this show with me and him both so he's out we were going to have a guest but he got pulled today for reasons i can't even go into it's crazy like they drop like flies when they when we uh when we uh i guess uh bail i guess yeah so it's me and you that's right old school this is the way it was and what year did you start with ksr shannon 2011 march of 2011 yeah so year one was me and zach and then shannon came on in 2011"

Matt Jones highlights the current staffing challenges for Kentucky Sports Radio, humorously noting the numerous absences due to various issues. This illustrates the unpredictable nature of managing a radio show and the reliance on a core team.

"i read it all i would suggest like first of all he did their interview with harold i have asked him to come on this show that we have gotten no answer we haven't gotten declined but we haven't gotten approved i also uh have asked him to even talk potentially off the record haven't heard anything so i've done all that i can haven't heard anything he decides to do it with the herald leader just as a pr strategy shannon just simply a pr strategy to me this is an example of how behind they are i don't say this to be rude but i know how many subscribers the herald leader has now i think it's sad that they don't have as many subscribers as they should because we need in kentucky a newspaper forget about sports just for news you need somebody shannon covering the news of the state and the herald leader and the courier journal did that for a century and the newspaper business it's tough so i subscribe i'll subscribe till they close the doors with that said if you're trying to get your message out shannon wouldn't it make sense to go to the people that have the loudest microphone absolutely and definitely not hide behind a paywall yes it's i mean the herald leader is just by its very nature going to be the place that that gets significantly fewer views with that said that's who he talked to"

Matt Jones expresses frustration with Mitch Barnhart's communication strategy, suggesting that Barnhart's interview with the Lexington Herald Leader, especially behind a paywall, is a missed opportunity for broader reach. Jones argues that a PR strategy should leverage platforms with larger audiences.

"question one was basically and the most important does the deal with jmi make it to where we can still get basketball recruits right yesterday and this timing is probably unfortunate christian collins so kentucky for if you're not following basketball recruiting kentucky has two guys that are amongst the best players in the country that it has been assumed for months we were going to get two top 10 players that at various points people have just assumed were going to kentucky tyren stokes and christian collins again if you haven't followed it duke has their guys they've all signed carolina has their guys they've signed kansas has their guys they've signed everyone has signed except our guys but the assumption has been we were going to get these two dudes christian collins was the one that was seemed to be a lock like done deal people had already put out the the gifts saying he's a cat yesterday the recruiting insiders all pulled their gifts from christian collins and basically said it's back open not good right right yeah it makes you wonder what was what was done and some of the recruiting insiders have basically said he can't get a deal done with kentucky now i don't know because i'm not part of that process but the recruiting people who that's what they do they say so to me that interview becomes even more important"

Matt Jones questions the impact of the JMI deal on Kentucky's ability to recruit top basketball players, citing the recent withdrawal of recruiting insider predictions for Christian Collins. Jones suggests that the inability to secure these highly sought-after recruits indicates a potential issue with the JMI agreement.

"the question is not once you're here can you go get other stuff i think everybody agrees the answer to that is yes the question is when we are guaranteeing you the money to play here and let's all be honest that is what's happening are you free when you take that money to also do other things uk will take a kid and let them do whatever they want but the question is with the guaranteed money are you free to do what you want does that make sense yeah and that question is not answered in that article and it's not asked directly it's asked whether or not they can do other things but it's not asked can they do other things after they've taken your money clearly there is got to be something in there because other schools all these other blue bloods already have players signed next year and we're the only one that still has nobody and we don't and i don't know the answer to that question and they've not answered it"

Matt Jones articulates a critical question regarding Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deals for recruits: whether players are free to pursue outside opportunities after accepting guaranteed money from the university. Jones points out that this specific question remains unanswered in Mitch Barnhart's interview, contrasting it with other universities that have already secured their recruits.

"i think that's fairly easy jmi provided a backstop in terms of financial uh support and it was probably one that uk believes they needed from what i've seen of the jmi deal and granted i give myself the ability to modify this when i learn more about it i think it's a really good deal for 95 to 97 of the student athletes at uk it provides an athlete that doesn't have a lot of market value him or her as him or herself a chance to make some money so i think it's a really good deal for women's basketball baseball uh volleyball and most of football probably almost all of football i mean the jmi deal works for those people the question is does it work for elite basketball recruits the elite basketball recruits who themselves have market value does it work for them and right now the answer for me seems to be no and that's why they're not getting these guys so the question is going to be will it be modified for the elite guys and we'll have to see and maybe it already is but nobody's answered the question so i don't i don't know"

Matt Jones explains his understanding of the JMI deal, suggesting it provides financial support and opportunities for most student-athletes, particularly in sports like women's basketball, baseball, and volleyball. However, Jones expresses concern that the deal may not be beneficial for elite basketball recruits