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Message: [QUOTE="frankthetank, post: 2462277, member: 2517"] Three points: (1) The Big East is a better and more valuable basketball conference than the AAC (whether you're talking about on-the-court results, branding or TV money). When you consider how much the Big East is getting paid in TV money and that it's higher than the AAC *without* football and all of the expenses that such sport entails, it's actually not even close from a revenue/expense standpoint. The ROI that the Big East is getting on just basketball alone crushes all of the G5 conferences (inclusive of both football and basketball) and is in line with (and possibly better than) the P5 with respect to basketball. (2) Joining the Big East at this time is not in the best interests of UConn as long as there is even a sliver of a chance of getting into the P5. Any and all P5 membership opportunities (to the extent that they will ever exist again) will be based on football value - period. (3) UConn can still win basketball games in the AAC. While football is a P5-or-bust exercise, there aren't the same structural impediments in basketball. Now, that doesn't mean that the biggest power conferences don't have advantages in basketball, too, but it isn't a bright line dichotomy. The AAC is certainly considered to be at least a major conference in the basketball realm that will consistently garner at-large NCAA Tournament bids, so the league in and of itself isn't the cause of UConn's on-the-court issues for men's basketball. Those three points are not mutually exclusive. The Big East is a better basketball league than the AAC (and it will likely always be a better league because it has a true brand identity compared to the AAC's attempt at a "best of the rest" hodge podge membership approach), but UConn can't really consider that as an option as long as there is ANY hope of a P5 invite down the road and the school can't really blame its lack of on-the-court success on the AAC itself. The gazillion dollar question is whether UConn truly in its heart of hearts believes that it will be in a P5 conference within the next decade. If so, then there's no choice but to stay put in the best football conference option possible (which is the AAC). If not, then the Big East is simply a better basketball conference both on-the-court and off-the-court - it makes more money, it has better brand recognition, and its teams consistently perform better. However, UConn effectively has to give up football and, in turn, all hope of a P5 invite in order for that to occur. None of that is an easy decision. It's like basically betting everything that you have in roulette where you're in a mansion if your number comes up, you'll be homeless if you lose, and there's no real comfortable option in between. [/QUOTE]

Verification: First name of men's bb coach