STORRS, Conn. — Rick Pitino is once more calling on the Large East to make modifications and develop to an excellent basketball convention.
In an interview on SiriusXM with legendary former Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, Pitino reiterated his stance that the league must act.
A month in the past, Coach Okay steered that the ACC and Large East merge to type one huge league, as conferences just like the Large 12, SEC and Large Ten have bulked up.
Pitino agreed with Krzyzewski, and the 2 introduced it up once more on Friday.
“I’ve been making an attempt to get [the Big East on board], and clearly I jumped in your bandwagon with the suggestion that you simply had about combining with the ACC, as a result of I’ve been making an attempt to get them to begin an excellent league basketball league,” Pitino mentioned. “And rise up to 18 groups, 16 groups. Eleven is simply not sufficient. And proper now, somewhat bit just like the ACC, we aren’t typical of the Large East of the previous that was getting eight or 9, 10 groups within the NCAA match. So I feel we’re lacking the boat if we don’t develop.”
It needs to be famous that the present iteration of the Large East inked a brand new six-year media rights take care of FOX, NBC, and TNT Sports activities final summer time that may common practically $80 million per 12 months.
It’s an enchancment on the present take care of FOX and CBS that expires on the finish of this season.
That was a 12-year contract that averaged $41.67 million per 12 months.
It, nonetheless, just isn’t corresponding to different energy conferences.
The SEC, for example, has a take care of Disney and ESPN that pays it $300 million yearly.
The Large Ten’s media rights contract totals $7 billion over seven years.
Pitino has additionally steered including faculties like Dayton and Saint Louis of the Atlantic 10 and Memphis of the AAC.
Now, that will reduce the sum of money every college pulls in from the present tv deal.
“Now the presidents, a lot of the presidents and doubtless together with mine, who’s a really educated basketball fan, they give thought to cash, they give thought to the underside line,” Pitino mentioned. “And it’s like an organization like Uber beginning out and so they’re dropping, you recognize, $500 million a 12 months, however they perceive 10 years down the highway they’re gonna be making a billion {dollars}. We simply can’t see that. We are able to’t see that there’s some huge cash to be made down the highway if we type an excellent league.”
“The coaches I feel are in favor of an excellent league,” he added, “and I simply assume the presidents are in opposition to it.”
As for a possible ACC-Large East merger, there are issues.
The Large East at the moment sits at 11 groups and the ACC has 18. A 29-team convention isn’t possible.
However a convention fronted by Duke, North Carolina, Connecticut, Marquette and Villanova would clearly have a whole lot of attraction.
The leagues mixed to ship simply eight groups to the NCAA Match a 12 months in the past and should not high that determine this March.
Such an alliance would additionally give UConn’s soccer staff a house.
The Huskies have flirted with becoming a member of the Large 12 a number of occasions in recent times, however the convention’s presidents have declined so as to add them.