Analyst Calls for Big 12 to Add Four Programs in Next Wave of Conference Realignment

With conference realignment far from over, Fox Sports Doug Gottlieb suggests the Big 12 should add 4 more programs to solidify themselves as a basketball powerhouse.

With talks of continued conference realignment ramping up, Fox Sports's Doug Gottlieb dropped a hot take on the Big 12 and its potential basketball prowess. 

I know it won’t happen, but adding New Mexico, UNLV, Colorado State and San Diego State would make the Big 12 the most insane hoops conference on the planet and make geographic sense for a western pod.

— Doug Gottlieb (@GottliebShow) March 17, 2024

In 2024, the Big 12 will be home to Arizona, ASU, Utah, Iowa State, BYU, K-State, UCF, OK-State, Kansas, Baylor, Cincinnati, Colorado, TCU, Texas Tech, Houston, and West Virginia which already spells for an incredibly stacked Basketball conference.

However, Gottlieb suggests that if the Big 12 adds New Mexico, UNLV, Colorado State, and San Diego State it would "make the Big 12 the most insane hoops conference on the planet and make geographic sense for a western pod."

While he acknowledges that such a feat is most likely too far-fetched to happen, the question remains, what if the conference did manage to pull off something so impressive? 

The Utes would have to put a ton of assets into the basketball program if they would even hope to stay afloat in such a potential "super" conference, especially after being a middle-of-the-pack team in a not-so-great Pac-12 conference when it comes to hoops in its current state. 

If the hypothetical conference was a reality right now, it'd be home to #2 Houston, #4 Iowa State, #9 Arizona, #14 Baylor, #17 Kansas, #21 BYU, #22 Texas Tech, and #24 San Diego State. Now, all but the Aztecs are already members of the Big 12 outside of Arizona who join for the 2024 season, and while the proposed additions may seem unimpressive based on the sheer basketball aura the conference already possesses, with Gottleibs proposed teams the conference has unlimited potential. 

Luckily, another realignment wave is still a few years out so fans can get settled with the current shakeup before another one occurs, but until then it remains to be seen how close some of these far-fetched proposals and scenarios are to becoming a reality.