KU basketball legends file class action lawsuit against NCAA over March Madness – Newstalk KZRG

NEW YORK (AP) — Kansas stars Mario Chalmers and Sherron Collins are among 16 former college basketball players who have sued the NCAA and several conferences, claiming they profit from the unauthorized use of their names, images and likenesses in promoting and monetizing the March Madness tournament.

Chalmers hit a three-pointer with 2.1 seconds left to force overtime in the 2008 national championship game against Memphis en route to the title. The lawsuit alleges that the NCAA and Turner Sports Interactive – another defendant – profited by replaying Chalmers’ shot without paying him.

The Big East, Pac-12, Big Ten, Big 12, SEC and ACC are also defendants in the class action lawsuit filed Monday in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

“The NCAA conspired with conferences, colleges, licensing companies and apparel companies to set the price of student-athletes’ labor at nearly zero, thereby turning student-athletes into unwitting and unpaid lifetime endorsements of the NCAA,” the lawsuit states.

The lawsuit alleges that March Madness generates nearly $1 billion in annual revenue for the NCAA, but none of that revenue has gone to the plaintiffs, who are now seeking unspecified damages.

“The NCAA’s illegal conduct has harmed Plaintiffs by reducing their ability to maximize their compensation for their publicity rights, including their rights to images related to the most profitable part of the NCAA’s revenues, basketball,” the lawsuit states. “The full amount of these damages is currently unknown, and they continue to grow as the NCAA and its partners and co-conspirators continue to profit from the ongoing, uninterrupted usurpation of Plaintiffs’ and class members’ publicity rights.”

An NCAA spokesman declined to comment Wednesday. The organization is already facing a series of federal lawsuits challenging its longstanding amateur model, and the case comes amid dramatic changes that cleared the way for athlete compensation.

A 2021 NCAA decision to allow athletes to earn endorsement money opened the door to millions of dollars in spending that has, among other things, changed the way schools and donor-backed efforts court recruiting. In May, the NCAA and the nation’s five largest conferences agreed to pay nearly $2.8 billion to settle a series of antitrust lawsuits, laying the groundwork for a revenue-sharing model that would send millions of dollars directly to athletes as early as next year.

Other plaintiffs include Ryan Boatright (Connecticut), AJ Bramlett, Eugene Edgerson and Jason Terry (Arizona), James Cunningham (Arizona State and Tulsa), Alex Oriakhi (Connecticut and Missouri) and Matt Pressey (Missouri).