Fans share their take on Nate Ament reportedly receiving five-figure NIL amount: "The +$88,000 sounds much better"

Five-star 2025 prospect Nate Ament committed to Tennessee on Sunday. This announcement has received mixed reactions from fans, especially with Ament's association with Fanstake.

Fanstake is a platform that allows fans to financially back athletes through NIL deals. Instead of relying on boosters, fans of each school can pledge stakes toward an athlete. If the athlete chooses their school, the pledged amount becomes an endorsement deal. If not, fans get their money back.

On Friday, Recruits News shared a post about Ament's commitment.

"Nate Ament will receive over $13,000 from @fanstakehq staked by Tennessee fans. The other fanbases will receive their staked money back," the post's caption read.

The highest amount, however, is from Louisville with $88,000, followed by Kentucky ($49,075) and Duke ($25,940). Louisville fans expressed their take on Ament's move in the comments section.

"The +$88,000 sounds much better," a Louisville fan page wrote.

Hoops fans react to Nate Ament's NIL amount from FanStake

"Yeah bro enjoy 13 bands buddy," another fan page wrote.

"Bro could have had 100k if he went to Louisville," a user wrote.

Some Tennessee fans are happy about the decision.

"New signing bonus just dropped," a Tennessee fan page wrote.

However, some fans can't understand Fanstake's NIL deals. They are happy their team's fans did not participate. Arkansas gathered $4,375, while BYU bought the bid up to $3,255.

"This is crazy to me. Giving 18-year-old kids direct money out of their pockets to have him play COLLEGE basketball," a user wrote.

"Good job Arkansas for not participating in this nonsense," another user wrote.

Ament, a 6-foot-10, 190-pound senior forward, helped Highland go 39-6 and reach the Throne national championships. In 45 games, he averaged 18.9 points, 10 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.2 blocks per game. He led the team to a state title in the Virginia Independent School Division I. He was picked for the McDonald’s All-American Game and Team USA for the Nike Hoop Summit.

Nate Ament Boosts Tennessee to No. 16 in ESPN Rankings

Tennessee moved up seven spots in ESPN’s early top 25 after signing five-star forward Nate Ament. Ranked No. 3 by On3 in his class, Ament is the highest-rated recruit in program history. He joins three other signees and two transfers in Tennessee’s 2025 recruiting class.

Tennessee coach Rick Barnes announced Ament's commitment. Regarding his recruitment, he said:

“While everyone is aware of just how special a player Nate is, what really drew us to him throughout the recruiting process was the type of person he is. Nate is a high-character, family-oriented young man with a tremendous, caring support system around him who will mesh with our program from day one. He brings a dynamic skill set to the hardwood, embodying the attributes of a modern basketball player."

DeWayne Brown II and Amari Evans are also signed with Tennessee.