As NIL valuations skyrocket, a lucrative move to Austin positions the Longhorns star to outearn "The King" while 18 collegiate athletes challenge NBA-level compensation benchmarks.
Due to the shocking developments the modern NIL era has produced in the college athletics landscape, we've maybe become too accustomed to puzzling headlines.
Each new story has the possibility of being more unconscionable than the last, but it's going to be difficult to top this one.
18 collegiate basketball players will make more in NIL during the 2026-27 campaign than LeBron James will in the first season of his new two-year, $7.95 million contract he signed with the Philadelphia 76ers.
The Athletic's Brendan Marks and Joe Rexrode received insight into the players' NIL deals after speaking "with multiple college coaches, general managers and NBA scouts."
Of those receiving more financial compensation than "The King": Texas' David Punch.
Punch was listed in the piece as a player who is set to make at least $3.9 million in NIL during James' inaugural season in the City of Brotherly Love.
The Harker Heights, Texas native arrives in Austin following two seasons at TCU. After serving as a key role player in his freshman campaign, Punch broke out as a sophomore, turning in 14.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.2 stocks per game.
His strong 2025-26 season resulted in Punch being listed as the eighth-best available transfer according to 247Sports. He officially committed to head coach Sean Miller and the Longhorns on April 12.
The ironic part of Punch being included on The Athletic's confirmed list is that one of his new teammates may also qualify for it.
Here at Longhorns Roundtable, we've speculated on what Marcus Spears Jr.'s NIL package could end up looking like based on the deals received by past No. 1 recruits.
We've told you that, since AJ Dybantsa and Tyran Stokes each reportedly received $7 million in compensation from BYU and Kansas, respectively, Spears could've potentially commanded even more.
Spears, the former top prospect in the 2027 recruiting class, opted to forgo his senior season at Dynamic Prep in Irving, Texas, to join Miller a year early.
Due to his age, Spears won't be eligible for the NBA Draft until he's completed his second collegiate season, whether that be in Austin or somewhere else (you never know now with NIL), which potentially positions the 17-year-old to profit more financially in his NCAA career than James will in what seems to be his final destination.
Spears may eventually join him, but Punch is already there.
And if the reported figures are accurate, Texas' prized transfer will enter the 2026-27 season making more money than LeBron James - a sentence that would've been unimaginable just a few years ago.
