The surprise transfers of brothers Nico and Madden Iamaleava to UCLA prompted fresh questions about contracts and name, image and likeness buyouts for athletes in a college sports landscape looking increasingly like the pros.

Nico Iamaleava, who led Tennessee to the College Football Playoff last season, walked away from a reported $2.4 million NIL contract to seek higher pay elsewhere. He joined UCLA on Sunday, reportedly for half the money though terms of any NIL deal were not released.

Arkansas freshman quarterback Madden Iamaleava entered the portal this week not long after spring practices wrapped up and will join his brother at UCLA, according to multiple media reports.

Arkansas athletic director Hunter Yurachek released a statement indicating he would support efforts by the Razorbacks’ NIL collective to enforce buyout clauses in athlete contracts. Iamaleava reportedly had a contract valued at $500,000 upon signing with Arkansas on Dec. 4, according to reports.

Arkansas Edge, the school’s collective, requires Iamaleava to repay 50% of their remaining contract value for leaving before the contract expires, according to reports. The Arkansas athletic department declined to comment and Arkansas Edge did not respond to messages.

Yurachek, in a post on X that did not name Iamaleava, wrote: “I have spoken with the leadership team at Arkansas Edge and expressed my support in their pursuit to enforce their rights under any agreement violated by our student-athletes moving forward. We appreciate Edge’s investment in our student-athletes and acknowledge the enforcement of these agreements is vital in our new world of college athletics.”

The latest cycle of transfers has seen a lot of chaos and accusations of tampering. Earlier this year, Wisconsin said it had “credible information” that Miami and Xavier Lucas made impermissible contact with each other before the former Badgers cornerback decided to transfer to his home-state school.

All this comes with final approval of the $2.8 billion NCAA antitrust settlement looming. The plan will clear the way for Division I schools to share up to $20.5 million each with their athletes annually but also assess NIL deals athletes sign with third parties.

The settlement would go into effect July 1, and athletes have been scrambling to renegotiate contracts or find better opportunities at new schools before deals valued at $600 or more must be approved through a clearinghouse that will be administered in part by financial giant Deloitte in a bid to establish fair market value.

Rich Stankewicz, the director of operations for the Happy Valley United collective backing Penn State athletics, said he thinks there is a time and place for NIL buyouts, citing a spring transfer departing before playing a snap as an example. He favors incentive-based contracts contingent on in-season academic and athletic performance.

“If more money is paid out in those time frames, that gives incentive for the player to stay and see those dollars from their contract, rather than potentially collecting up front and then deciding the grass is greener somewhere else three months later,” he told the AP.

Russell White, president of The Collective Association, said buyout clauses have been baked into high-value NIL contracts for some time but that those clauses probably will become standard for all athletes going forward.

White said collectives have been mostly successful quietly coming to settlement terms with athletes who leave — which, according to New York-based employment attorney Dan Ain, is advantageous to both sides.

“Suing 19-year-old kids isn’t a great look,” Ain said.

Iamaleava, who is from Long Beach, initially pledged to UCLA last May. He made a signing-day flip from the Bruins to Arkansas and enrolled in January. He was the No. 3 quarterback in spring practice behind Taylen Green and KJ Jackson.

Some of the questions amid all the transferring and severed deals center on whether NIL deals are enforceable contracts with the NCAA settlement not yet approved.

Matthew Shepherd, an attorney and member of the Arkansas House of Representatives, co-sponsored the state’s NIL law. He said if Madden Iamaleava left on his own volition, the terms of the NIL deal would be subject to standard contract law.

Shepherd noted the NIL law was modified in 2023 to include a provision prohibiting a third party from offering NIL inducements to an athlete who already is enrolled at one of the state’s schools or who has entered into an enrollment contract. If that happened in Iamaleava’s case, Shepherd said, the school or third party such as an NIL collective could take legal action.

Missouri-based sports attorney Mit Winter said collectives could be hard-pressed to win court fights. If Madden Iamaleava’s contract would require him to pay back 50% of its remaining value, perhaps $200,000 in liquidated damages, Arkansas Edge would have to show why that is a reasonable estimate of damages.

Winter said if a court finds that amount to be more of a penalty than a reasonable estimate of damages, the buyout would be unenforceable.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

Nikki Blue is joining the staff of USC women’s basketball coach Lindsay Gottlieb as an assistant.

Blue is making a quick pivot from the WNBA’s Sparks, who hired her as an assistant in January.

She had been the interim head coach for the Phoenix Mercury over the final 28 games of the 2023 season after joining the franchise as an assistant in 2022.

Before working at the pro level, Blue was an assistant at UNLV, Cal State Bakersfield, Grand Canyon and Arizona State over 16 seasons.

“We have elite players who want to eventually become pros, so we wanted to add someone who has pro experience,” Gottlieb said in a statement.

Blue was a star guard for crosstown rival UCLA in the early aughts before playing in the WNBA for five years with Washington and New York. She also played two years in Turkey and Greece.

NFL

Steve McMichael, a star defensive tackle on the Chicago Bears’ famed 1985 Super Bowl championship team whose larger-than-life personality made him a fixture in the Windy City for decades and a natural for professional wrestling, died following a battle with ALS. He was 67.

McMichael died Wednesday, his publicist, Betsy Shepherd, told The AP.

An All-Pro in 1985 and 1987, McMichael was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2024. He played in a franchise-record 191 consecutive games from 1981 to 1993 and ranks second to Richard Dent on the Bears’ career sacks list with 92 1/2. His final NFL season was with Green Bay in 1994.

The Detroit Lions and All-Pro safety Kerby Joseph agreed on a contract extension, multiple sources reported. The deal is for $86 million over four years, making Joseph the NFL’s highest-paid safety. He led the league with nine interceptions last season, helping Detroit win a franchise-record 15 games and a second straight NFC North title.

New Orleans Saints general manager Mickey Loomis confirmed for the first time that starting quarterback Derek Carr does have a shoulder “issue,” but he declined to discuss specifics or forecast Carr’s playing status for the upcoming season.

“We’re hoping to get some resolution and some clarity on that in the near future,” Loomis said. “And when we do, I’ll report back to you. Otherwise, I don’t have anything more on Derek.”

TENNIS

Italian teenager Federico Cina picked up his second ATP Masters 1000 victory by defeating Coleman Wong in straight sets at the Madrid Open, while Gael Monfils became the oldest winner in the tournament’s history.

Monfils, 38, rallied from a poor start to defeat qualifier Borna Gojo 1-6, 6-2, 6-4 for his first win in Madrid since 2022. The 42nd-ranked Monfils is a two-time quarterfinalist at the Masters 1000 clay-court event.

Cina, 18, won 7-6 (5), 6-1 to back up his victory over current No. 70 Francisco Comesaña in Miami last month, which marked his ATP 1000 debut. He saved both break points he faced against Wong and finished with 19 winners.