Pac-12 Basketball: 10 potential candidates for expansion after losing USC and UCLA

Colorado State

We dive back into a pool of MWC teams and emerge with Colorado State, a program that’s had decent success in both basketball and football in recent years. Things could fall a dozen different ways with the current members of the conference, but adding Colorado State would give the Pac-12 a solid member in the right part of the country that might be a gold mine for athletics in the future.

Head coach Niko Medved has made a great impact in the last few seasons on the basketball court, and this Rams program is thriving again after a rough stretch in the mid-2010’s. This isn’t to say that this team would just start winning Pac-12 titles, but Colorado State would absolutely be competitive in a new-look Pac-12, certainly moreso than teams like Oregon State and Utah right now.

One reason why Colorado State would be a natural addition is that they’d form a natural rivalry with Colorado, though you have to wonder if the Buffaloes want their “little brother” to join them like that. From an on-court perspective, Colorado State to the Pac-12 would work, though it’s hard to imagine this program being as consistent as someone like Arizona or Oregon has been in the major sports. Still, there are much worse options available, even from the MWC.