TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Six former Florida State University basketball players filed suit Monday after Seminoles coach Leonard Hamilton failed to fulfill a promise to each player to receive $250,000 in name, image and likeness compensation. filed a lawsuit.
Plaintiffs Darin Green Jr., DeAnte Green, Camron Fletcher, Josh Nickelberry, Primo Spears and Jalen Worley filed the lawsuit in Leon County Circuit Court and are based in Fort Lauderdale. Attorney Darren Hytner said: 20 page complaint.
Former players claim Hamilton promised them money from “business partners”. They pulled out of last season’s practice over unpaid bills and planned to boycott the Feb. 17 game against Duke, according to the suit. Despite assurances from Hamilton that he would be paid, they ended up playing and the Seminoles lost, according to the suit.
Hamilton’s attorney is not named in the lawsuit.
“We support Coach Hamilton’s right to defend himself against these allegations and look forward to a speedy resolution of this matter,” the university said in a statement.
The university’s statement also said that while an investigation into the allegations is ongoing, “At this time, there is no guarantee that FSU or the Rising Spear Collective will be able to fulfill their obligations with respect to scholarships and other appropriate benefits with respect to NIL payments owed to players.” We don’t know of any promises that haven’t been made.”
FSU hosts Syracuse on Saturday.
The complaint also includes multiple text message exchanges between the players and between the players and Hamilton.
FSU finished 17-16 last season, including 10-10 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Hamilton, 76, is in the final year of his contract. The Seminoles have 9 wins and 4 losses, including 0 wins and 2 losses in league play.
No plaintiff in the lawsuit remains on the team. Darin Green and Nickelberry exhausted their college eligibility last spring, and the remaining four transferred schools. Spears is currently at UTSA, Fletcher is at Xavier, DeAnte Green is at South Florida and Worley is redshirting at Gonzaga.
The lawsuit is the latest in a growing number of NIL legal battles.
Matthew Sulka, who was the starting quarterback for the UNLV football team, left the program after three games in September, saying he was not paid on his $100,000 NIL contract. Jaden Rashada, a former Florida quarterback signed and currently playing at Georgia, sued Gators coach Billy Napier last year over an alleged $13 million back pay with NIL. Several Tulsa players also claim they are owed thousands of dollars in NIL contracts made by former coach Kevin Wilson.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
