With the Pac-12 being so underwhelming as a basketball conference over the last 10+ years, are the "others" out West missing out on an opportunity to form a conference that elevates them as a THE basketball power in the Western part of the country? While the ACC had the brands with Duke & North Carolina, for years the Big East was recognized as the better league due to its depth. The same would be the case out West. The Pac would have UCLA & Arizona, but the "others" would have Gonzaga, SDSU, BYU, UNLV, Saint Mary's, New Mexico, etc.

For years the Big East thrived as a basketball conference, despite being a bit of a hodge podge of small basketball schools and big football schools. The brand became so strong that even after losing most of its biggest names during realignment it still landed a $500M TV deal. So the Big East without football and after losing many of its biggest names is earning more per year in TV revenue ($5M per school) than the Mountain West as a mid tier football conference ($4M per school). Which begs the question, what are the Western schools leaving on the table (TV revenue, Tournament bids/seeds/credits & conference tournament revenue) by focusing on football and not creating a basketball alternative to the Pac-12 out West? In a sport that is all about playing as many quality games as possible in order to stockpile Q1/Q2 victories to inflate NET Ratings with "resume building" opportunities, it seems as if these schools are blowing a huge opportunity.

I'm not saying this conference would warrant Big East level revenues immediately, but by basketball being its primary focus labels like G5, non-P5, mid major, etc. would not apply anymore. Just look what joining a gutted Big East has done for the likes of Butler, Creighton, Xavier, etc. Even former nobodies like Providence, Seton Hall & DePaul in the old Big East are now core members of the reorganized version of the conference.

As an aside, a classic Big East style 16 team five day conference tournament at the MGM in Las Vegas sounds like a ton of fun (and a huge revenue generator). I still remember the old MWC Friday night semifinals in Vegas as one of the best sporting events on BYU's annual calendar. This setup and combination of teams has the potential to take it to another level.