Players should 'delay March Madness' amid #NotNCAAProperty campaign, ex-Duke star Jay Williams suggests

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Former Duke men’s basketball star Jay Williams had a suggestion for current NCAA players participating in the tournament this month as #NotNCAAProperty began to trend among participants on social media.

Williams said that players should consider delaying the tournament as part of student-athletes’ fight to be compensated for the use of their name, image and likeness.

"The #NCAA needs the revenue more than ever right now considering last year. The players should delay March madness & demand Name, Image and Likeness until it gets passed. Let people come at me.... I will say it for all of the players," Williams tweeted.

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Williams played for Duke from 1999 to 2002 and helped the team win a national championship in 2001. He was selected No. 2 overall by the Chicago Bulls but a motorcycle accident effectively ended his career.

His tweet Wednesday came in response to Rutgers star Geo Baker tweeting about the NCAA owning his name, image and likeness.

FLASHBACK: RUTGERS' GEO BAKER COMPARES NCAA AMATEURISM TO 'MODERN DAY SLAVERY'

"The NCAA OWNS my name image and likeness. Someone on music scholarship can profit from an album. Someone on academic scholarship can have a tutor service. For ppl who say "an athletic scholarship is enough." Anything less than equal rights is never enough. I am #NotNCAAProperty," he wrote.

Several other players followed suit.

It’s unclear whether anything will come out of the hashtag campaign.

The NCAA is in the process of trying to reverse course on its longstanding amateurism rules, which prohibit athletes from making money off of their names. The NCAA was set to vote on NIL legislation in January but was delayed after a letter from the Justice Department warned that changes may violate antitrust laws.

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Now, the Justice Department has backed the plaintiffs’ against the NCAA in a case set to appear before the Supreme Court. The players have called for the NCAA to allow student-athletes to be paid for the use of their name, image and liknesses by July 1.

"I know the members are ready, willing and able to act on (NIL), but there’s no doubt that this is all been made more complex because of their position, the DOJ, the antitrust division’s position and our uncertainty about it and its connection to the Supreme Court case," NCAA President Mark Emmert told the Associated Press earlier this week.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.