In the age of name, image and likeness, priorities have changed for many college athletic departments across the country.

NIL in many cases has taken priority over other issues when it comes to where money should be spent. Bruce Pearl mentioned that new reality Monday afternoon when asked about Auburn scrapping plans to build a new basketball practice facility and instead proposing $9 million worth of renovations to Neville Arena.

“Would any basketball coach like to have a standalone, state-of-the-art basketball facility? Of course, I’d be disingenuous if I said that we wouldn’t love to have that,” Pearl said. “But when NIL came in at the same time that our new practice facility was approved — and I think it was even before John Cohen was the AD. I immediately looked at it and said, ‘We’ve got plans.’

“We were in the process of just finishing up football’s facility. We knew baseball renovation was coming. We knew that the stadium had some things that were coming, and I just looked at it all at that time when NIL first came out and said, ‘I just don’t think we can do this right now. Or whether we should do this right now because we’re going to need to fund our student-athletes in all sports.’”

Initial plans to build a new basketball practice facility were approved in February 2022, but were put on hold at the time due to Auburn prioritizing NIL.

“We’ve got to take care of the NIL space first — in all sports,” Pearl said in September 2022. “First, that’s got to be one of our commitments and our objectives…. We’ve got some other things to take care of before we take care of the practice facility.”

Three years later, plans to build the new facility are being scrapped and the Auburn Board of Trustees will vote on proposed renovations to Neville Arena at its Feb. 7 meeting. The new project is estimated to cost $9 million, according to the meeting’s materials documents.

“Due to the heavy use of the competition floor and existing practice gym, this project’s originally proposed scope of work included the construction of an additional practice gymnasium and expanded team support spaces,” the materials read. “However, during the design process, the Athletics Department adjusted the scope to properly and reasonably address the original project goals without requiring the construction of an additional practice gym.”

According to the materials, the new project will be titled “Neville Arena – Team Support Improvements,” and “will renovate 22,500 square feet within the arena providing enhancements to the existing practice gym, scholarship lobby upgrades, and relocated and enlarged team meeting and office spaces within the men’s and women’s basketball suites.”

When speaking to reporters Monday, Pearl also mentioned that he “didn’t think it was fair” for Auburn to rely on its donors and advertisers to participate in NIL, “then ask them at the same time for a brand-new state of the art practice facility.”

The new project will be financed by athletics department funds, according to the Feb. 7 meeting materials.

Peter Rauterkus covers Auburn sports for AL.com. You can follow him on X at @peter_rauterkus or email him at [email protected]m