Miami guard Isaiah Wong has threatened to enter the transfer portal if he does not receive a better NIL deal following his team's Elite Eight berth in the 2022 NCAA Tournament, his agent Adam Papas of NEXT Sports Agency has told ESPN.
Papas said his client — who declared for the NBA Draft earlier this week but who purportedly wants to return to play collegiately — will enter the NCAA transfer portal on Friday if he doesn't get a better NIL deal.
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"If Isaiah and his family don't feel that the NIL number meets their expectations they will be entering the transfer portal tomorrow, while maintaining his eligibility in the NBA Draft and going through the draft process," Papas told ESPN.
"Isaiah would like to stay at Miami," Papas added. "He had a great season leading his team to the Elite Eight. He has seen what incoming Miami Hurricane basketball players are getting in NIL and would like his NIL to reflect that he was a team leader of an Elite Eight team."
Wong, a rising senior, is a two-time All-ACC player and was the Hurricanes' second-leading scorer in the 2021-22 season, averaging 15.3 points per game. Wong was also the team's second-leading scorer in the 2022 NCAA Tournament, averaging 16.3 points per game en route to an exit in the Elite Eight against eventual national champion Kansas. He averaged 4.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.3 steals per game as well.
Papas told ESPN that Wong's dissatisfaction with his current NIL deal is in relation to another deal — that he negotiated — for Kansas State transfer Nijel Pack, which includes $800,000 over two years and a car. The deal was negotiated with billionaire John Ruiz, who according to the Miami Herald has 111 deals signed or pending with Hurricanes athletes to promote his companies, LifeWallet and Cigarette Racing.
"Understanding what John Ruiz is trying to do with the NIL space and the city of Miami, we feel the value of Isaiah Wong should meet or exceed the value of an incoming transfer," Papas told ESPN.
Pack was considered the No. 1 player in the transfer portal at the time he committed to play for Miami.
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Ruiz confirmed to ESPN that he is aware of the situation with Wong but does not renegotiate deals.
"Isaiah is under contract," Ruiz told ESPN. "He has been treated by LifeWallet exceptionally well. If that (transferring) is what he decides, I wish him well, however, I DO NOT renegotiate! I cannot disclose the amount, but what I can say is that he was treated very fairly."
Florida law currently does not allow universities to get involved with NIL deals; a Miami spokesman declined comment to ESPN in regard to the situation. Papas also confirmed that he had not spoken directly with Miami officials, suggesting the situation is entirely out the university's hands.
The ongoing situation is another facet to the transfer portal and NIL era, which is largely unregulated by the NCAA as it undergoes a significant structural reorganization. The deadline to enter the portal and still be immediately eligible to play the next season is Sunday, May 1.