NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) did not just change how players get paid. It changed how college basketball rosters get built.
Action Network analyzed how roster construction shifted after NIL and created the NIL Experience Index to measure which programs changed their roster experience profile the most compared with the pre-NIL era.
In the pre-NIL window used for this study (2017 to 2020), experience was usually built the slow way. Programs recruited freshmen, developed them internally, and gained veteran lineups as those players progressed into junior and senior roles.
The post-NIL era changed the pathway for many programs. Across high-major college basketball, transfer reliance increased and roster turnover sped up, making experience easier to add quickly. Instead of waiting for a freshman class to become juniors and seniors, more teams can now import veteran production through the portal and reshape a roster in a single offseason.
That shift has not looked the same everywhere, which is why this index focuses on three roster signals.
- Upperclass shift (pp)
Change in the share of the roster made up of juniors, seniors, and graduate players. Higher values mean a larger move toward experienced lineups. - Transfer shift (pp)
Change in the share of the roster made up of incoming transfers. Higher values mean greater reliance on the transfer portal as a roster-building tool. - Age shift (years)
Estimated change in average roster age based on the roster’s class-year mix. More juniors, seniors, and graduate players push the estimate higher, while younger rosters built around freshmen and sophomores pull it down.
pp means percentage points. It measures the direct change between two percentages, such as 40% to 60% being a plus 20 pp shift.
Key Findings
- Biggest overall shift:Michigan Wolverines (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor) ranked No. 1 with a 97.1 Experience Shift Score, including a +26.3 pp upperclass shift and a +0.65 years age shift.
- Largest upperclass shift:Providence Friars (Providence College) posted the biggest jump in upperclass share at +26.5 pp.
- Largest transfer shift:Miami Hurricanes (University of Miami) recorded the biggest increase in transfer reliance at +22.2 pp.
- Largest age shift:Virginia Tech Hokies (Virginia Tech) posted the biggest estimated roster age increase at +0.91 years.
- Most minimal change:Minnesota Golden Gophers (University of Minnesota) ranked last at No. 75 with a 4.4 Experience Shift Score and a -4.7 pp upperclass shift.
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Top 5 Programs With the Biggest Roster Experience Shifts After NIL
These programs are ranked by how much their roster experience profile changed after NIL compared with their own pre-NIL baseline.
Michigan Wolverines (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor) — Ranked 1st
- Experience Shift Score: 97.1
- Upperclass shift: +26.3 pp
- Transfer shift: +10.4 pp
- Age shift: +0.65 years
The Michigan Wolverines posted the largest overall shift in the dataset. The roster became dramatically more upperclass-heavy while also increasing transfer usage.
Georgetown Hoyas (Georgetown University) — Ranked 2nd
- Experience Shift Score: 95.9
- Upperclass shift: +25.0 pp
- Transfer shift: +19.0 pp
- Age shift: +0.62 years
The Georgetown Hoyas’ shift was driven by both retention and portal construction, producing one of the largest post-NIL experience moves in the study.
Providence Friars (Providence College) — Ranked 3rd
- Experience Shift Score: 94.6
- Upperclass shift: +26.5 pp
- Transfer shift: +13.7 pp
- Age shift: +0.63 years
The Providence Friars posted one of the biggest upperclass increases in the rankings and paired it with meaningful portal integration.
Wake Forest Demon Deacons (Wake Forest University) — Ranked 4th
- Experience Shift Score: 93.4
- Upperclass shift: +20.1 pp
- Transfer shift: +16.2 pp
- Age shift: +0.54 years
The Wake Forest Demon Deacons climbed through a balanced shift across all three experience signals.
LSU Tigers (Louisiana State University) — Ranked 5th
- Experience Shift Score: 92.1
- Upperclass shift: +20.5 pp
- Transfer shift: +8.2 pp
- Age shift: +0.55 years
The LSU Tigers added a large amount of roster experience while leaning less heavily on transfers than many of the other top movers.
Portal Heavy Climbers
These programs posted especially large increases in transfer reliance as part of their overall shift.
Washington Huskies (University of Washington) — Ranked 6th
- Experience Shift Score: 90.9
- Upperclass shift: +15.3 pp
- Transfer shift: +20.1 pp
- Age shift: +0.42 years
The Washington Huskies posted one of the largest transfer spikes in the dataset, indicating a portal-driven approach to adding experience quickly.
Miami Hurricanes (University of Miami) — Ranked 8th
- Experience Shift Score: 88.4
- Upperclass shift: +14.7 pp
- Transfer shift: +22.2 pp
- Age shift: +0.49 years
The Miami Hurricanes recorded the biggest increase in transfer reliance in the dataset, showing heavy portal usage to reshape roster composition.
Texas Tech Red Raiders (Texas Tech University) — Ranked 9th
- Experience Shift Score: 87.1
- Upperclass shift: +15.9 pp
- Transfer shift: +21.5 pp
- Age shift: +0.45 years
The Texas Tech Red Raiders moved into the top 10 with a shift driven largely by transfer integration.
DePaul Blue Demons (DePaul University) — Ranked 59th
- Experience Shift Score: 24.4
- Upperclass shift: +4.1 pp
- Transfer shift: +20.0 pp
- Age shift: +0.20 years
The DePaul Blue Demons’ experience shift was driven primarily through transfers rather than a major increase in upperclass share.
Butler Bulldogs (Butler University) — Ranked 69th
- Experience Shift Score: 11.9
- Upperclass shift: +5.7 pp
- Transfer shift: +19.0 pp
- Age shift: +0.00 years
The Butler Bulldogs posted a large transfer increase with a flatter age change, suggesting volume movement without a major shift in average roster age.
Programs That Shifted Least
At the lower end of the index, some programs showed limited net change between eras.
Missouri Tigers (University of Missouri) — Ranked 73rd
- Experience Shift Score: 6.9
- Upperclass shift: +5.5 pp
- Transfer shift: +4.0 pp
- Age shift: +0.13 years
The Missouri Tigers’ experience profile stayed relatively stable compared with the largest movers.
TCU Horned Frogs (Texas Christian University) — Ranked 74th
- Experience Shift Score: 5.6
- Upperclass shift: +2.1 pp
- Transfer shift: +0.0 pp
- Age shift: +0.21 years
The TCU Horned Frogs showed modest change across all three metrics.
Minnesota Golden Gophers (University of Minnesota) — Ranked 75th
- Experience Shift Score: 4.4
- Upperclass shift: -4.7 pp
- Transfer shift: +7.6 pp
- Age shift: -0.08 years
The Minnesota Golden Gophers posted minimal net experience shift and one of the only negative upperclass changes in the dataset.
Why the NIL Experience Index Matters
The post-NIL era did not just add a new compensation layer. It changed incentives and timelines.
Programs can now accelerate roster building, prioritize immediate stability, and use the transfer portal as a primary construction tool. That pushes the sport toward older lineups and faster turnover.
This index captures how much that structural approach changed across high-major college basketball. It does not project wins. It measures how roster construction strategy evolved after NIL.
Methodology and Sources
This analysis compares roster composition across two multi-year windows to measure structural change rather than one-season noise.
Time windows
Pre-NIL seasons: 2017 to 2018, 2018 to 2019, 2019 to 2020
Post-NIL seasons: 2022 to 2023, 2023 to 2024, 2024 to 2025
The disrupted 2020 to 2021 season and the 2021 to 2022 transition season are excluded from the core comparison.
Programs included
The analysis focuses on high-major Division I programs. The focus on high-major programs keeps the competitive tier consistent, minimizing structural differences that could distort comparisons.
Data sources
Sports-Reference college basketball rosters
Transfer portal reporting for context and validation
On3 NIL valuations as optional context, not directly scored
Roster experience metrics
Roster size, upper class share, transfer share, average age proxy
Pre vs post aggregation
For each program, each metric is averaged within the pre-NIL window and within the post-NIL window. Shifts are computed as post minus pre.
Experience Shift Score
Shift metrics are standardized, combined into a composite, and normalized to a 0 to 100 scale. Higher scores indicate a larger post-NIL shift toward experienced, transfer-built roster construction.
Notes and limitations
Age is an estimated proxy derived from class year, not player birthdates. Transfer share measures roster construction signal only and does not measure transfer quality or playing time impact.
