Does Penn State Want to Fund a Basketball Team That Can Compete in the Big Ten?

Penn State Athletic Director Pat Kraft seemed to paint a different picture about the men’s basketball team’s NIL resources than head coach Mike Rhoades. Instead of saying the Nittany Lions are “at the bottom” of the Big Ten in NIL funds, as Rhoades did recently, Kraft wanted to sound more optimistic.

In fact, Kraft said he believes Penn State men’s basketball has enough NIL funds to keep pace in the conference standings next season, even though Rhoades’ comments and reports of NIL budgets question whether the Nittany Lions can be competitive in the Big Ten after winning three conference games and finishing last during the 2025-26 season.

“Mike has the money to be competitive in the Big Ten,” Kraft said at Big Ten Media Days in Chicago recently. “Mike's like any coach. I'm like this with [Penn State President] Neeli [Bendapudi]. I want to find more ways to make more money, and that's what makes him great. But we are investing at a level where Penn State basketball should compete to get in the NCAA Tournament.”

The NIL issue amplified decades-long questions about Penn State basketball: Can the program be competitive annually in the Big Ten, and if not, is it worth serious investment? The answers are bound together as Penn State continues to focus more resources on football, renovate Beaver Stadium and pay athletes across 29 other sports.

Penn State’s budget isn’t near NIL market averages

During an offseason media availability, Penn State men's basketball coach Mike Rhoades spoke bluntly about the program's NIL situation. Question from @WillHorstman_ for context.

📽️Penn State Athletics pic.twitter.com/REoPQA42FI
— Mark Wogenrich (@MarkWogenrich) July 21, 2026

Penn State’s NIL budget for men’s basketball “sat around $4 million” last year and has “nearly doubled” since then, according to Jon Sauber of the Centre Daily Times. In other words, it appears that Penn State’s NIL budget for the 2026-27 season will be $7-8 million, based on Sauber’s report.

A number in the range of $7-8 million seems to align with Rhoades’ belief that the Nittany Lions rank below their Big Ten foes in NIL spending. In a recent report by The Athletic, anonymous Big Ten coaches estimated teams in the conference are spending an average of $14.3 million in NIL for next season. The Athletic also reported that average is up 68.2 percent from $8.5 million last season.

That said, Kraft was adamant that Penn State doesn’t know exactly what other Big Ten teams are spending on NIL. He also acknowledged that Penn State’s 2025 roster-building strategy has changed.

“You've got to recruit and get the right student-athletes, and you’ve got to spend the money the right way, too,” Kraft said. “That's another part of it. Now, where we were in basketball last year, we went young [in terms of roster age]. This thing flipped on its head.

“Mike's done a great job recruiting, but if you notice rosters, they're not young anymore that win, so we got caught in a place where we were behind.”

Penn State’s estimated NIL budget for the 2026-27 season would be comparable to last year’s average Big Ten number that The Athletic reported. But after making up that ground this offseason, the overall NIL market grew again, leaving the Nittany Lions far behind. So long as NIL budgets continue to grow across the conference, this will be a recurring theme each offseason for Penn State.

Rhoades still feels behind in NIL even after adding veteran talent

Penn State Nittany Lions head coach Mike Rhoades gestures to his team against the Northwestern Wildcats. — Penn State Nittany Lions head coach Mike Rhoades gestures to his team against the Northwestern Wildcats during the first half at United Center. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Penn State struggled last season with one of the youngest rosters across all power conferences. The Nittany Lions finished 12-20 overall and 3-17 in Big Ten regular-season, finishing 18th in the conference standings.

That led Rhoades to adjust his roster-building philosophy this offseason, prioritizing experience and proven production at the collegiate level. So far, he has signed six transfers who have at least two seasons of collegiate experience, including wing Brant Byers from Miami (Ohio). In addition, Rhoades landed international commits Roko Prkačin and François Wibaut, who have extensive professional playing experience in Europe.

After adding those players, Rhoades declined to say definitively whether he has enough NIL funds to acquire the level of talent Penn State needs to be competitive in the Big Ten. Rhoades said that “no coaches are going to say they have enough” in the NIL “arms race.” But his wording that followed seemed to answer the question.

“We've got to find a way to make the best of it and go from there,” Rhoades said during last week’s press conference via a Zoom call. “What teams are doing in our league, and what we're not doing, are totally different. It is what it is, just got to make the best of it. But I've said it, I'm not making any excuses. Just when your back's up against the wall compared to what others are doing, no excuses. Got to figure it out."

Kraft believes Penn State did a “phenomenal job of recruiting the portal” this offseason, adding that the “early returns of them practicing look great.”

“I think where we are is where we believe is the best place we can be right now,” Kraft said. “It's evolved. It will change next year and the year after, but make no bones about it. We can win, and we need to continue to do that. But this team he's got, I'm excited about this team.”

Kraft could be right that the Nittany Lions are in their “best place” with the NIL budget Rhoades was given. But it’s also true that Penn State’s “best place” still trails by a wide margin when compared to its overall competition in the Big Ten.

Will Penn State ever have a competitive NIL budget?

ICYMI on Penn State hoops spending https://t.co/5A5ELawccC pic.twitter.com/HLc02mgeYw
— Audrey Snyder (@audsnyder4) July 27, 2026

Kraft clarified that he can’t just give the men’s basketball program more money, saying Penn State is already maximizing revenue sharing “like everybody else does in the Big Ten.” But NIL is different from revenue sharing, an additional set of funds that helps programs acquire and retain talent at higher levels.

During the 2024-25 fiscal year, the athletic department reported spending $3 million on NIL for men’s basketball. That was before revenue sharing went into effect July 1, 2025.

Any further NIL funds have to come through philanthropic support and “third-party, traditional NIL,” Kraft said. This is where the men’s basketball program gets “caught with a bit of a challenge,” according to Kraft.

Still, Kraft seems confident about his men’s basketball program despite the NIL concerns.

“Penn State basketball can win,” Kraft said. “Penn State basketball should win this year.”

Penn State’s priority is football, and Kraft also said that he has 29 other teams to fund, including “the best wrestling program in the world” and “elite” hockey, soccer and lacrosse programs. Kraft said that’s “not taking away from” the support to Rhoades, who “has the resources.”

But in an appearance on The Nittany Dispatch podcast, Kraft said Penn State men’s basketball doesn’t, and won’t, spend $20 million on a roster, doesn’t have the most NIL resources in the Big Ten and probably never will. Addressing those comments at Big Ten Media Days, Kraft said that doesn’t mean the Nittany Lions can’t win.

“Penn State basketball can win,” Kraft said in Chicago. “Penn State basketball should win this year. We are equating two different topics: spending $20 to $25 million on a roster outside of the operating funds of the department.

“... Now, here's what I'm saying: The world we live in right now, I just can't hand money over to Mike and pay the athletes.”

However, Kraft was never asked whether he’d spend the most in the Big Ten on men’s basketball NIL, yet he mentioned it on The Nittany Dispatch and at Big Ten Media Days. This comes as Kraft doesn’t really address what work Penn State is doing to have an NIL budget that wouldn’t cause Rhoades to feel he’s “at the bottom” of the conference in NIL funding.

“Mike has the resources,” Kraft said. “Does Mike have the most? No. And people are taking my comments that I said we're not going to be the most resourced program in the Big Ten. We're not. That does not mean we don't win.”

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