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Report: Ja'Kobi Gillespie is taking Maryland NIL collective to court for refusing to pay

Originally posted on Maryland Terrapins on SI
By Chris Breiler | Last updated Jun 9, 2025 10:58 AM ET

According to a report by Taylor Lyons of The Baltimore Sun , former Terrapin Ja'Kobi Gillespie is taking a Maryland NIL collective to court for refusing to pay. Gillespie's lawyer and father say that the former Terrapin has not been paid the full amount for the NIL contract he signed with Blueprint Sports.

Via Lyons' report:

"Ja'Kobi was promised he'd still receive his monthly checks regardless of whether he transferred, but that Blueprint now says it will not pay out the remainder of the agreement after he transferred to Tennessee in April."

More reporting today: Ja'Kobi Gillespie is taking a NIL collective Maryland partners with to court. They're refusing to pay him, his lawyer said.

“It makes it look like Willard was right,” @Byrongillespie7
said. “Maybe they don’t have the money.” https://t.co/po4O7M9qoH
— Taylor Lyons (@taylorjlyons) June 9, 2025

The report goes on to say that Gillespie plans to proceed with mediation in court with the collective this month.

The report over Gillespie's dispute with the NIL collective is part of a larger report that details Kevin Willard's chaotic exit from Maryland. It highlights Willard's frustration with the Maryland basketball program early on, along with an ongoing battle between Willard and former athletic director Damon Evans. The report provides a detailed look at how everything went wrong toward the end of Willard's coaching career in College Park, ultimately leading to the departure of both Willard and Evans.

You can read the full report from Lyons here.

Just days after being hired in 2022, Kevin Willard told a Maryland booster "I've never seen a place that cares less about winning in basketball than this."

Inside Willard and Damon Evans' falling out and how Maryland is moving forward. https://t.co/4QzlnWQCj7
— Taylor Lyons (@taylorjlyons) June 9, 2025