Valley, A-10 and MWC stuff

These are three leagues that can be fun basketball leagues. Can they be leagues that get multiple bids and be contenders in March? Let’s examine.

The Valley

In a word? No. The money spent at Creighton in facilities outstripped the rest of the league. Wichita State struck gold with Gregg Marshall who stayed long after many coaches would have bolted. Sadly, for the Valley, Wichita State parlayed that into a “promotion” to the AAC. Simply put, unless someone spends on facilities like Creighton or strike gold with a coach and some luck, it’s unlikely the Valley can match the glory days of the aughts.

Now, it’s possible for a team to rise and be a legit March threat but they’ll always be behind the 8-ball as the league has lost any room for error when it comes to seeding. A weaker league and fear of being scheduled will make it hard for a Valley team to earn a solid seed.

A-10

When conference realignment struck, I probably underestimated just how hard hit the A-10 was. Losing Temple was a serious blow even if the Owls have had middling results the last few years. Xavier was a blow as well. Less so was Butler since they were only there for a year. Adding George Mason and Davidson added two schools serious about basketball but without the budgets of X and Temple. VCU was a good addition. They’ll take a step back this year. The real test is how they respond to a rebuilding year.

The A-10is far weaker than what it was five years ago but there are enough schools serious about winning that success is possible come March. They’ll need some luck and more importantly, good coaches that stick around. Keeping Dan Hurley at URI matters after losing Shaka Smart and Archie Miller the last two years.

Mountain West

We’ve said ad nauseum it wasn’t that long ago they were sending five teams to the dance. That may not be repeatable but any league that has New Mexico and UNLV can’t be dismissed.

Neither team is expected to be very good this year. In fact, this will probably be New Mexico’s worst team in years. They hired away New Mexico State’s Paul Weir and if given time, should find a lot of success. UNLV is the key to a resurgent Mountain West. Marvin Menzies came aboard to a true train wreck. He’s slowly building a program and recruiting at a solid level. When these two return to national prominence, the MWC can be a high level league again.

Behind those two programs, there is enough depth to build a solid league. The key question is can San Diego State sustain success without Steve Fisher? With the amount of talent in California, SDSU will have a chance to do so. Steve Fisher turned a moribund program around and given it a solid base. It’s up to Brian Dutcher to make it happen.