[Paint Touches] Now is the time for CBB Champions League

[PaintTouches]

If you follow PT or Andy Glockner on Twitter, you've probably encountered the argument for CBBCL before. But seeing the schedule mapped out as it would look this year has me convinced that this is the key to expanding CBB past just a one month sport.

https://painttouches.com/2019/11/08/now-is-the-time-for-a-college-basketball-champions-league/

[Its DJOver]

Interesting idea.  Fun exercise.  Very low confidence level that it could actually work.  Think it'd end up similar to the CL where you consistently have a half dozen European Elites/Blue Bloods comprising the majority of the finalists, with an occasional run by an Ajax/Cincy team.  We already get what would essentially be the semis more times than not with the Champions Classic, and while it'd be a better game, I'm not sure how many more casual fans would tune in to watch Baylor v UCF/Barca v Slavia Prague, then would watch the Seattle v Washington St. game mentioned.  Good read though, as usual.

[PaintTouches]

Interesting idea.  Fun exercise.  Very low confidence level that it could actually work.  Think it'd end up similar to the CL where you consistently have a half dozen European Elites/Blue Bloods comprising the majority of the finalists, with an occasional run by an Ajax/Cincy team.  We already get what would essentially be the semis more times than not with the Champions Classic, and while it'd be a better game, I'm not sure how many more casual fans would tune in to watch Baylor v UCF/Barca v Slavia Prague, then would watch the Seattle v Washington St. game mentioned.  Good read though, as usual.

I think you are right that 60% of the content would be pretty indistinguishable from what we already get, so not a net improvement, but it's the fact that you have the other 40% interspersed on a nightly basis that has me really intrigued.

And the Final 8 probably would be Blue Blood city, as a group stage means quality wins out more often than in a single elimination, but I think that would be a selling point for advertisers. 

Thanks for your feedback! 

[Coleman]

I like the idea, but this just sounds like a scheduling nightmare

[Its DJOver]

I think you are right that 60% of the content would be pretty indistinguishable from what we already get, so not a net improvement, but it's the fact that you have the other 40% interspersed on a nightly basis that has me really intrigued.

And the Final 8 probably would be Blue Blood city, as a group stage means quality wins out more often than in a single elimination, but I think that would be a selling point for advertisers. 

Thanks for your feedback!

You might get a few more quality "group stage" games, but unless I'm reading it wrong, only one team per group advances to the knock out stage.  I would put the over/under on one seeds advancing at 6.5, and think that we could never see anyone lower than a 2 advance.  The great thing in March Madness/UCL Knockout Stage is that anything can happen over 40/180 minutes.  Even in the knockout stage, the top 2 teams advance, and the third goes to the Europa League, so if you're mathematically eliminated after 3-4 games an upcoming match between Club Brugge and Galatasaray still has trophy ramifications.  In order to do something similar in CBB would require far to many non-conference games and would be a scheduling nightmare since you don't know if you're in or not until the end of the previous season. 

UCL is in addition to the regular season.  Last year I believe that Liverpool played something like 56 games in all competitions, where a mid table Bundeslegia team may play less than 40.  Works for soccer, but would be even more of a nightmare for the selection committee comparing team resumes where someone has 5 more wins, but has played 8 more games.  The idea of 20 being some magic number to shoot for would completely disappear (which may not be a bad thing, as it is already in decline with better advanced ranking systems). 

Really fun exercise, and would be interesting to see, I just thing that there would be too many problems to overcome for somewhat limited results.

[The Sultan]

If you follow PT or Andy Glockner on Twitter, you've probably encountered the argument for CBBCL before. But seeing the schedule mapped out as it would look this year has me convinced that this is the key to expanding CBB past just a one month sport.

https://painttouches.com/2019/11/08/now-is-the-time-for-a-college-basketball-champions-league/

The reason last night's college basketball slate was terrible is because there was an NFL game. 

[wadesworld]

I'll be honest and admit I didn't read the full article as I'm really not into soccer and not that interested in changing the entire format of college basketball.  My problem with trying to make the claim that there's a way to make the college game more than just a one month sport and the way to do that is to actually eliminate the one thing that makes people interested in the sport for that one month is that I think if you eliminate that one month it becomes closer to a 0 month sport than it does a 6 month sport.  The two appeals with college basketball is that 1) unlike football where teams can go undefeated and not even get into the one "tournament" that matters, every team has a chance to play themselves to a national title and 2) the one and done format is what is appealing to the public.  The UCI's making the Sweet 16 or George Mason's making it to the Final Four are what draws viewers.  If you go to a format where only certain teams are playing a very limited number of teams and only those teams have a chance at a championship people will just tune out.

I'll be honest, with Marquette being solid to great most of my life and the Bucks stinking most of my life I was way more invested in college basketball than I was in the NBA.  But now with Giannis and the Bucks being one of the best in the league I will watch way more NBA basketball than I will college basketball.  We had 1 vs. 2 and 3 vs. 4 in college basketball to open the season and I watched 3 vs. 4 for a half and thought it was absolutely terrible entertainment.  If you eliminate the excitement of the one and done tournament where everyone has a chance to make it into that tournament (by conference tournament champions) I'd watch very little of it as the product just isn't that good, even with the very best teams playing each other.

[The Sultan]

They are talking about a tournament occurring now.  Not replacing the traditional post-season tournament.

And actually the UCI's making the Sweet 16 isn't what draws viewers.  It draws storylines, but the viewers will still watch Duke and the other blue bloods and Power 6 teams.

[PaintTouches]

Yea, there's no touching the current March Madness, that's gold (though I will vouch for having the committee only select and seed the teams, and then have the bracket draft live, but that's for another discussion).

This would (mostly) break the current Non-Con Holiday Tournaments. I don't think it's a major loss from a schedule perspective, my worry is financial, as in how do you make ESPN/FOX whole when there's only 4 good Holiday Tourneys instead of 10+ as there are now.

But then you'd be adding one REALLY GOOD tournament with the group winners. It wouldn't have the same meaning as the real one, but it would be much better than any November one we currently have. 

[wadesworld]

Got it, sorry.  I shouldn't have commented without reading the article.