Big 12 Basketball: Future of conference with Oklahoma and Texas leaving

Just 72 hours ago, the Big 12 was gearing up to begin their athletic season, with Big 12 Media Days in football ending last week. The headlines only geared up for the future, with the announcement of Oklahoma and Texas in discussions to join the SEC.

On Friday, sources confirmed that Texas and Oklahoma will be leaving the Big 12.  With the Longhorns and Sooners on the move, the rest of the conference members sit in a state of uncertainty.

Questions swirling, whether the Big 12 is looking to expand in order to save credibility. Or if the Big 12 becomes the Southwest conference, known as the past. Opinions and theories on what the conference does is spread all over the internet.

However, a topic not discussed enough is how this will impact the landscape of not just Big 12 Basketball, but all of college basketball. The Big 12 is a consensus top 2 KenPom conference and has been ranked No. 1 multiple times over the past decade. The conference finished No.2 last year behind the Big 10 and had six members make the NCAA Tournament.

The reigning national champions reside in the Big 12. A conference of credibility and pure talent is on the verge of chaos and the attention is not placed enough nationally on the impact the basketball programs will have.

Kansas head coach Bill Self has double-digit conference championships, alongside a national championship. Baylor head coach Scott Drew has led the Bears to 13 straight 18+ win seasons and Texas “won” the transfer portal with new head coach Chris Beard as the Longhorns have a   top three roster in the country.

If the conference intends to expand and find a handful of teams to join, it has some members that can make the Big 12 an even more difficult conference on the hardwood.

Houston is coming off a final four appearance and consecutive AAC Championships. Geographically, the cougars make the most sense and replaces Texas as another team in the lone star state.

The rest of the options for expansion are less certain. Wichita State has ties to the state of Kansas and would strengthen the middle half of the conference, an area Oklahoma consistently finishes in. The university is basketball-heavy but does not bring a football presence.

If expansion falls through, the Big 12’s chances of surviving with eight teams become less likely. In the college basketball landscape, a ton of prominent programs will be on the market, for conferences to strengthen up.

Oklahoma State is in the right direction with Mike Boynton and Stillwater is proven to be a place high-talent players can perform well.

Mark Adams has been the defensive guru in Texas Tech and takes the reigns in Lubbock. The Red Raiders bring in another respectable roster, that would compete for the top half of any conference.

The most notable program is Kansas, which is a blueblood that any conference would gladly invite. Baylor coming off a national championship can bring consistent high-level basketball into any conference and compete for the conference crown.

The Big 12 conference featured marquee non-conference games, specifically the Big 12/SEC Challenge and multiple top 10 matchups on a yearly basis.

Even with talk of new teams and where new teams will go, there’s not a certain idea as to what the Big 12 will do.

What does happen will not only change the future of those teams but the conferences impacted by it. Fellow conferences would strengthen, with the addition of legitimate basketball programs that would add parity within the leagues.

Whether it being the Big 12 staying alive or becoming history, each of the ten basketball programs’ future is as hazy as it has ever been.