Vol. 26 | November 21st, 2024

Good Morning!

This week, we’re diving into Nike's groundbreaking NIL basketball roster, highlighting our top 5 picks of athlete-influencers who are also cooking creators, and showcasing the freshmen to watch this November—making waves both on the court and across social media this college basketball season.

— Jack Adler and Corey Bruno

👟 Nike Unveils Its Latest NIL Basketball Roster

Led by Rutgers stars Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper, Nike has unveiled its latest NIL basketball roster—marking a bold move with long-term partnerships that include top high school recruits AJ Dybantsa, Jazzy Davidson, and Jerzy Robinson.

The global sports brand leader released the roster with a social media video narrated by Kevin Durant, part of Nike's "This Family Isn’t For Everyone" campaign.

This unique collaboration with emerging talent signals a new era in NIL and athlete marketing. Here’s our analysis of the standout players joining Nike’s roster.

Rutgers Stars:

• Ace Bailey, despite playing just one college game and missing the first week due to injury, is already a top five prospect for the 2025 NBA Draft, with the potential to challenge for the No. 1 pick.

• Dylan Harper is quickly establishing himself as a standout point guard, averaging 21.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 3.7 assists through three games. Dylan is also projected as a top five pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.

• Despite Rutgers being an Adidas-sponsored school, both Bailey and Harper have been seen wearing Nike shoes during competition, including a recent SLAM Magazine cover shoot where they sported Nike Kobe sneakers with their Adidas uniforms.

The Impact:

Nike’s decision to sign these two rising stars reflects its strategy of building individual athlete brands that transcend school affiliations, focusing on personal marketability rather than just team sponsorships. By securing both players at the same time—top prospects in the same draft class and on the same team, Rutgers—Nike is positioning itself to support their growth together, fostering a dynamic partnership as they both rise through the ranks.

Marketability Profiles:

All marketability data from Out2Win’s Intelligence Platform

High School Phenoms:

Young Star Power:

• AJ Dybantsa, the top-ranked high school basketball player in the nation from Utah Prep High School, is widely projected as the No. 1 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. Despite his rising star status, he has yet to announce his college commitment. He has grown 223% on Instagram this year from 101K to 327K followers.

• Jerzy Robinson, the No. 1 recruit in the 2026 class, is making headlines at Sierra Canyon High School in California—the same program that produced Nike standout JuJu Watkins. She has achieved 65% follower growth on Instagram this year.

• Jazzy Davidson, a standout from Clackamas High School in Oregon, officially signed with USC this week. Over the course of this year, she has grown 145% on Instagram.

These signings underscore Nike's strategic focus on securing top talent early, paving the way for long-term athlete partnerships and driving growth in the high school NIL space nationwide.

🍳 Top Food & Cooking Athlete Influencers

The food and beverage sector has emerged as one of the most dynamic areas in NIL. Using Out2Win's intelligence platform, we’ve uncovered the top 5 athlete creators in the food and cooking space, uniquely positioned to integrate brands seamlessly into their content.

From UFC stars to D1 athletes and micro-influencers, food brands now have endless opportunities to collaborate with athletes in an authentic way—whether through their diets, meal prep, cooking routines, recovery habits, and more.

Here are our picks for the standout athletes in this space:

1. Alexander Volkanovski, UFC

448K Instagram Followers | @Cookinwithvolk 
874K TikTok Followers | @Alexvolkanovski 
510K Youtube Subscribers | @AlexVolkanovskiOfficial

Breakdown: After years of creating cooking content across various platforms, Volkanovski finally launched his own Instagram account in August of this year. Since then, he's rapidly grown to 448K followers with an impressive 9.4% engagement rate. Known for posting mouth-watering recipes, he often features fellow UFC fighters to share their diets. Volkanovski extends this content to TikTok and shares long-form cooking videos on YouTube, offering a deeper look into his culinary passion.

2. Marcus Rios, UCLA Football and NFL Alumni

326K Instagram Followers | @Marcusriosofficial
362K TikTok Followers | @Marcusriosofficial
150K Youtube Subscribers | @Marcusriosofficial

Breakdown: Rios, a former pro football player, has transitioned into a successful athlete influencer across three platforms, growing his follower count by over 89% this year. In addition to sharing training videos, he frequently posts his recipes for high-performance meals and juices that help him maintain peak fitness.

3. Cece Liu, George Mason Tennis

40K Instagram Followers | @Ceceliu_
8K TikTok Followers | @Ceceliu_
41K Youtube Subscribers | @Cece_Liu

Breakdown: Cece’s content centers around her lifestyle as a D1 Tennis player at George Mason. She shares videos giving a behind-the-scenes look at a typical day in her life and others showing everything she eats in a day as a college athlete. Her content includes quick, engaging Instagram clips that recap her day, along with longer vlogs on YouTube offering a more in-depth view into her routine and diet.

4. Brandon James, Maryland Track & Field Alumni

51K Instagram Followers | @easybran
112K TikTok Followers | @easybran

Breakdown: Even after graduating from Maryland, Brandon continues to grow as an influencer, increasing his follower count by over 30% in the past four months. He shares a mix of lifestyle, gym, and diet content. His cooking and diet content features a variety of videos, including plant-based meals, high-protein meat dishes, and savory options. Brandon posts engaging short-form videos on Instagram and TikTok, showcasing his daily routines and meal prep.

5. Makenzie Steele, Clemson Track & Field

44K Instagram Followers | @goodfoodgoodrun
23K TikTok Followers | @goodfoodgoodrun
2.5K Youtube Subscribers | @goodfoodgoodrun

Breakdown: As an active Track & Field athlete from Clemson, Makenzie frequently shares insights into her diet. She posts recipes that she prepares in her free time, what she eats in a typical day to fuel her training, and what she picks up from the grocery store to support her performance. Makenzie maintains a mix of long-form vlogs on YouTube documenting her athletic journey, along with short-form content on Instagram and TikTok.

Honorable Mentions: 

Isabella Pavlides (Bucknell Field Hockey), Tahj Washington (Miami Dolphins), and Eric Shindell (Hofstra Wrestling).

DISCOVER MORE!

Leverage our NEW content categories filter to identify athletes who make all types of content from Food & Cooking to Pets!

We use AI to analyze posts, captions, hashtags, and more to determine the content types of over 200,000 athletes.

🔥 November’s College Basketball Freshmen To Watch

Making Waves On and Off the Court

These college basketball freshmen have made an immediate impact, impressing on the court during the first week of their college careers. Pettiford posted 21 points in a game against No. 4 Houston, McNeeley is averaging 14 points and 8 rebounds for UConn, Jones is contributing 10 points per game for NC State, and Toby Fournier has emerged as a potential superstar for Duke, averaging over 12 points in just 19 minutes of play.

With established social media followings, their standout performances are fueling even faster growth, solidifying them as true athlete-influencers. These athletes are not only making headlines on the court, but also offer immense value to any brand that partners with them early in their careers.

Marketability Profiles

All marketability data from Out2Win’s Intelligence Platform

For more College Basketball Marketability Insights, check out our FREE College Basketball Marketability Report:

Who is the most marketable Heisman candidate?

Check out last week’s report for the full marketability breakdown on players like Travis Hunter, Ashton Jeanty and Dillon Gabriel.

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