Florida State Basketballers Sue Coach Over Unpaid NIL Cash (1)

Six former Florida State University men’s basketball players claim coach Leonard Hamilton cheated them out of $1.5 million in commitment sweeteners, according to a complaint filed Monday in state court.

Hamilton promised players and their parents $250,000 per-player in name, image, and likeness payments for the 2023-2024 season if the players would commit to his squad and remain enrolled at Florida State, the players said in the complaint filed in Leon County Circuit Court.

“Punitive and exemplary damages are appropriate here, where Hamilton continuously duped the Plaintiffs, many of whom desperately relied on the promised payments, to halt this prevalent practice of coaches inducing reliance by similarly situated athletes across the country,” said the complaint, filed by Fort Lauderdale, Fla. firm Heitner Legal PLLC. The players “are in a poor position to negotiate and are being taken advantage of by unscrupulous people in positions of power every day.”

The breach of contract suit is part of a broader trend as colleges wrestle with the largely-unregulated NIL landscape.

Many schools have set up fundraising networks in the form of NIL collectives, but the complaint alleges Hamilton said he and his “business partners” would supply the cash.

The players are seeking the cash and punitive damages under breach of contract theories, as well as fraudulent and negligent misrepresentation. The complaint includes what the players say are text messages between them and an NIL fundraiser for the team.

“I’m telling you the sad truth that zero of the promises made to us came through in the past month,” one text message from the fundraiser said. “That whole film room talk we had, not a penny has come in.”

The lead plaintiff is Darin Green, Jr., a former guard for the team. He claims that after a February 2023 home loss to Boston College, Hamilton told Green’s father the school had “at least $250,000" in NIL money set aside for his son in the coming year.

Three transfer players said they received a similar promise if they came to FSU, which they all did without receiving the $250,000. Two other players also sued, but the complaint doesn’t include details of their alleged claims.

In a statement, the school said it is investigating the allegations. It said provides training for coaches and athletic staff regarding NIL, and is unaware of any outstanding payments for its athletes.

“We support Coach Hamilton’s right to defend himself against these allegations and look forward to an expeditious resolution of this matter,” the school said.

The case is Green v. Hamilton, Fla. Cir. Ct., docket number unavailable, complaint filed 12/30/24.