NIL Causes Questions for the Future of G League Ignite

NBA commissioner Adam Silver in the process of reassessing Ignite

The emerging world of name, image, and likeness in college basketball has hurt the G League Ignite. NIL deals now allow college athletes to make money while in school, so there's not much of an advantage of playing for the Ignite as a top recruit.

NBA commissioner Adam Silver spoke about the future of the Ignite and said that they're in the process of reassessing it, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN.

"I'm not sure what the future of Team Ignite will be, because before there was a hole in the marketplace that we thought we were filling before doing that, and now my focus is turning to earlier development of those players."

Ignite allowed pre-draft eligible players to be paid before they entered the NBA. At the time, it was the perfect idea and a way to steal players from college and put them in the NBA ranks.

The introduction of NIL, however, gave the Ignite direct competition. In fact, NIL deals can often be for much more than what the G League can offer.

Jalen Green, Jonathan Kuminga, Dyson Daniels, MarJon Beauchamp, and Scoot Henderson are just a few of the former Ignite players that have been drafted in the NBA.

College basketball players are making more money than ever before. Two of the top 10 NIL valuations are college basketball players, according to On3. 20 men's basketball players have valuations over $500,000.

The Ignite are a brutal 6-31 and have the worst Net raring in the league. The team has multiple draft prospects, but competing with professionals isn't easy for college-age kids.

NIL is changing the game at every level, including the professional ranks.