How San Jose State’s Invisible NIL Presence Is Hurting HC Tim Miles
SJSU reporter Matt Weiner gives an in-depth look about how SJSU’s lack of NIL is negatively impacting Tim Miles.
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The soulless power of NIL
After a demoralizing 77-65 defeat to UNLV last Saturday, SJSU head coach Tim Miles quipped that, “Last year every time I made a decision, it was the right decision and it worked out. And this year, I can’t make one [right] decision. It feels like each one gets screwed up.”
Does this mean Miles, the 2022-23 Mountain West head coach of the year, lost his touch?
The Spartans are currently 1-6 in conference play and could fall to 1-8 after games against No. 17 Utah State on Tuesday and Nevada on Friday. If that happens, players may start to lose faith and the Spartans could plummet back to the lows they hoped to escape. In doing so, Miles’ chances of ascending back to a Power Five could crater significantly.
In reality, however, Miles hasn’t lost his touch. He’s just living proof of NIL (name, image and likeness) stratifying the ‘haves’ and ‘have-nots.’
SJSU, which has no NIL money to offer recruits, has now fallen to five of the seven Mountain West teams who “have reported annual NIL budgets for men’s basketball over $400,000,” according to the SF Chronicle. It could be all seven if SJSU can’t upend Nevada this Friday and Colorado State a week later.
When Miles was asked if SJSU’s conference struggles are a result of NIL after the UNLV loss, he quickly pivoted from the subject into the Runnin’ Rebels’ hot-and-cold tendencies.
“Oh, you know, I mean, there’s talent, right? They’re [UNLV] really talented,” Miles said. “ … I was joking with one of their media guys before the game, I’m like, ‘well, which team is gonna come out Jekyll or Hyde?’ Because they’re [UNLV] really dangerous. I think we got Jekyll in the first half and Hyde in the second or who is more dangerous? I don’t know.”
Few can fault Miles for demurring.
By talking to the media about the talent disparity forged by NIL after a loss, he could diminish players’ confidence and come off as an excuse-maker. But no matter what he says, the data is undeniable.
Just take the last two losses.
The Spartans received a 95-75 thumping by No. 19 New Mexico, which spent “$1.5 million” in NIL money, according to the Las Vegas Sun. ”
A few days later, the Spartans were torched by first-year Runnin’ Rebels Keylan Boone, a transfer from Oklahoma State, and Dedan Thomas Jr., the eighth-best high school point guard in the nation. The duo, who received NIL money to play in Las Vegas, combined for 34 points (16 from Thomas Jr. and 18 from Boone) and pitched in a few of the 14-straight field goals UNLV made to end the game en route to rallying back from an 11-point first-half deficit.
“I felt humiliated the way the second half went,” Miles said.
Added SJSU point guard Alvaro Cardenas: “I feel like we just haven’t been able to put up 40 minutes of basketball.”
That much is true. The Spartans have been outscored in the second half in every conference game and could be 0-7. Their lone Mountain West win over Air Force was helped by crucial, late-game mental lapses by Cadets big man, Rytis Petraitis, and a miraculous, buzzer-beating three-pointer by SJSU point guard Myron “MJ” Amey Jr.
Now, forgiveness for SJSU’s inability to close games could be offered when it fell to Mountain West’s top dogs San Diego State and Boise State. The problem, however, is that SJSU’s second half struggles have occurred against teams ranked below it in the NET. Which begs the question: Is this team just not capable of beating conference opponents?
For the 2023-24 season – possibly.
This reflects poorly on Miles, but is it fair to criticize him? Of course not.
While other Mountain West head coaches can use NIL funds to nab elite high school talent or veterans in the transfer portal, Miles must construct his roster with no-star recruits or players descending to SJSU after unsuccessful stints at a Power Five.
SJSU’s inexperienced frontcourt triumvirate of sophomores Adrame Diongue and William Humer and freshman Diogo “DJ” Seixas have been unable to fill in for the season-long absence of sophomore power forward Robert Vaihola. What’s more, second rotation players like freshman Latrell Davis and sophomore Garrett Anderson continue to be non-factors.
“We’re asking guys to do things that they’re not always ready for. We just have to continue to find strategic ways to be better,” Miles said.
As a result, SJSU’s veteran core – Amey Jr., Cardenas and wings Trey Anderson and Tibet Gorener – need to play unreasonably well.
Thankfully for Miles, each member of the veteran core has taken that pivotal third-year leap. There’s a reason why SJSU has at least held leads over conference opponents and boasts wins over Santa Clara (No. 107 in NET) and UC Irvine (No. 76 in NET). So this should bode well for next year, right?
In theory yes, but what if any of SJSU’s veteran core gets poached by a bigger program that can offer more exposure and NIL opportunities? In that scenario, Miles could be in an even worse position for the 2024-25 campaign.
Based on how he was let go by Nebraska in 2019, he can’t afford any career setbacks. SJSU could be his last shot of reaching those same heights. But the more SJSU struggles, the more Miles’ SJSU resume signifies that he is incapable of succeeding without Omari Moore, the 2022-23 Mountain West player of the year, whom he inherited.
These trying times illustrate why Miles told SJSU’s NIL collective Blue & Gold Unlimited this past off-season, “‘We really have to make a decision. Do we want to be Division I? Or do we want to be Division II? And if you really want to be Division I, we have to get behind the collective and the driving forces behind that to be able to keep up.’”
If Miles is losing faith, he must remember that he concocted rebuilds at every rung the NCAA has to offer, including at CSU from 2007-12 which is how he ascended to Nebraska. And he’s the man who nicknamed himself ‘Coach F.E.M.A.’ because of that uncanny ability to weather storms.
“You either adapt or die,” Miles said before the season began.
He better hope so.
