UConn fans should've had their eyes opened when the school was once again bypassed from every viable (then P5) P4 option, basketball matters very little in the scheme of realignment and isn't going to "save" the school. I don't think that as the P4 seeks to maximize basketball and tournament revenues for themselves, that there will be any pause given to the thought of "what about the Big East?" Ultimately, UConn needs to find a home in any one of those leagues. While I don't think UConn would take a Gonzaga deal at $2M for the Big XII (that's actually a raise for Gonzaga), but if the money is equal, let alone if there is any kind of increase UConn needs to jump at any kind of opportunity.
I don't think the next Big East deal is going to be anywhere near the windfall some were predicting a couple of seasons ago, or even last year. The Big East is nice to have, not must have property for the networks, even more so if you go to a streaming first model. Other than UConn & Villanova there are no other schools in the conference that on their own makes a game worth-airing. Creighton, Marquette, St. John's all are brands worth airing only if they are having success or making the news (for example if Pitino can stir up enough controversy to make St. John's the Colorado football of NCAA hoops). In a streaming model, only UConn & Villanova have brands big enough to drive subscriptions and, other than UConn, all are small(ish) private universities which further limits the ability to monetize the Big East rights through subscriptions.
