As the saying goes a high tide raises all boats.
If there is only a single boat raised it's still raised but the value is different.
The example of this is what BYU did for WCC. And these smart coaches at SMU and GU know this. They made every team more competitive first off.
They also added financial value. Every time we 0layed a team their arena was filled. You are not getting that when Portland plays San Diego. You don't even get it when SMU or GU plays one of those schools.