On Monday, six former Florida State basketball players filed a lawsuit against Seminoles coach Leonard Hamilton, accusing him of failing to fulfill a promise to secure $250,000 in name, image, and likeness (NIL) compensation for each of them.
The plaintiffs—Darin Green Jr., De’Ante Green, Cam’Ron Fletcher, Josh Nickelberry, Primo Spears, and Jalen Warley—submitted the lawsuit in Leon County circuit court.
Their attorney, Darren Heitner from Fort Lauderdale, provided the 20-page complaint to The Associated Press. The case was first reported by Yahoo Sports.
The former players claim Hamilton assured them the funds would come from his “business partners.” The lawsuit states that the players walked out of a practice last season due to the missed payments and planned to boycott a game against Duke on February 17.
They ultimately played in the game, which the Seminoles lost 76-67, after Hamilton guaranteed they would be paid, but the payments never materialized, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit does not list an attorney for Hamilton. Florida State is set to host Syracuse on Saturday.
The complaint includes several text message exchanges, both among the players and between the players and Hamilton.
Florida State finished last season with a 17-16 record, including a 10-10 mark in the ACC. The 76-year-old Hamilton is in the final year of his contract, and the Seminoles currently have a 9-4 record, with an 0-2 start in league play.
None of the plaintiffs are still on the team. Green and Nickelberry exhausted their eligibility last spring, while the others transferred: Spears is now at UTSA, Fletcher at Xavier, De’Ante Green at USF, and Warley at Gonzaga.
This lawsuit adds to the growing list of NIL-related legal disputes. UNLV quarterback Matthew Sluka left the team in September after a $100,000 NIL deal was never paid. Former Florida quarterback signee Jaden Rashada, now at Georgia, sued Gators coach Billy Napier last year over an unpaid $13 million NIL deal. Additionally, several former Tulsa players claim they were never paid thousands in NIL commitments by former coach Kevin Wilson.
