UNLV men's basketball coach Josh Pastner moved to clarify his words Monday after comments he made last week drew attention.
Pastner had referred to the athletic department seeking out an "owner" for the Runnin' Rebels men's basketball program. He posted a statement on the program's social media channels Monday explaining what he meant, according to ESPN.
The remarks came in the context of the NIL era, which has changed how college athletic programs operate and fund their rosters. Schools across the country are now competing not just for recruits, but for donors and investors willing to channel money into NIL collectives that pay players. The language of ownership, once foreign to college sports, has begun creeping into conversations about how programs sustain themselves at a high level.
Pastner's original comments, made last week, used the term "owner" to describe the kind of financial backing UNLV is looking for. The statement posted Monday was meant to add context to those remarks, though ESPN did not include the full text of the clarification in its reporting.
UNLV has been working to raise its profile in college basketball. Pastner, who has previous head coaching experience at Memphis and Georgia Tech, took over the Runnin' Rebels program and has been building toward competing at a higher level within a changing landscape.
The NIL era has placed pressure on programs outside the traditional power conference schools to find creative ways to compete financially. For a program like UNLV, which operates in Las Vegas and draws on a large regional fanbase, attracting major NIL investment could be a deciding factor in recruiting battles against wealthier programs.
The statement was posted directly to the program's official social media channels, suggesting Pastner and the athletic department wanted to get ahead of any further confusion before the comments spread further. No additional details about specific ownership discussions or potential investors were included in ESPN's report.
