Oklahoma State athletics consistently shows itself to be looking for creative ways to capitalize in the name, image, and likeness era.
Last month OSU hosted “The Boys From Oklahoma,” a four-day Red Dirt music festival at Boone Pickens Stadium, with proceeds benefiting its NIL fund. And during the 2024 football season, the Cowboys were prepared to place QR codes on the back of their helmets, allowing fans to scan them and access a link to donate NIL money. The NCAA blocked OSU from doing so, but it was a good, first-of-its-kind idea.
Now, though, OSU has another opportunity.
It should follow the latest trend in college hoops of hiring a former player in an “assistant general manager” role. The Cowboys have several alumni who could help their recruiting and NIL efforts and could continue to help Steve Lutz bring back a strong basketball identity to Stillwater.
Stephen Curry is currently an assistant GM for his alma mater, Davidson. Oklahoma brought in Trae Young for the same position, and he donated $1 million to the Sooners’ program. On Monday, it was reported that Shaquille O’Neal will be the GM at Sacramento State, where his son, Shaqir, plays. Mikey Williams, a former UCF guard who was a high school star, committed to O’Neal and Sac State on Tuesday.
If the Cowboys are interested, they should look to do the same with a Cade Cunningham, Marcus Smart or Tony Allen. Bringing in a big-time name to help be a recruiter, fundraiser and negotiator, among other things, in this wild new landscape of college sports would only be beneficial, especially for a program that isn’t swimming in blue-blood resources.
In a statement to The O’Colly, athletic director Chad Weiberg said OSU is continuing to discuss the best ways to be creative in the NIL era.
“As college athletics moves into revenue sharing for NIL, it is important for us to be creative and I think we have been,” Weiberg said in the statement. “From being among the first to add a field naming partner in Bank of Oklahoma, to the four days of Boys from Oklahoma concerts, to the addition of field suites, we are exploring and acting on a lot of creative ideas. We are fortunate to have many great former players in all sports and many have told us they are willing to help. We’re grateful for that and continue to discuss the best ways they can do so.”
Cunningham (2021), Smart (2013) and Allen (2004) each won Big 12 Conference Player of the Year honors at OSU. Cunningham was picked No. 1 by the Detroit Pistons in the 2021 NBA Draft and is a young star. Smart has won a Defensive Player of the Year award. Allen was a pest on defense, too, and his No. 9 jersey number is retired by the Memphis Grizzlies.
If OSU had a player who’s still active like Cunningham or Smart, their roles might be smaller, but it would still be a good resource. They could join Lutz on remote recruiting visits, help players handle NIL or endorsements or just be a mentor. A retired player like Allen could do all those things in a more hands-on fashion, depending on their role.
Someone in that role could also assist the Cowboys with one of the most significant aspects of modern college sports: retention.
Having someone who — along with Lutz and his coaching staff — builds good relationships could help keep a player once they have pledged their commitment or are considering the transfer portal.
Lutz has done well recruiting this offseason. He’s brought in seven transfers and has the No. 9-ranked portal class in the country, according to On3, as of Thursday night. But having a Cunningham, Smart or Allen in on occasional recruiting visits to talk about their experience in Stillwater, and then in the NBA, among other duties, would give OSU an extra boost it’d have no reason not to want.
sports.ed@ocolly.com