The Big East has been the standard by which other conferences have been measured.
To just be a part of that conversation again, the reinvented league first must prove it belongs the first two months of the season.
“November and December will tell a lot in how they fare and if they are accepted, not only this year, but the next three or four years,” new FOX analyst Bill Raftery said.
“I think it’s going to be in the top echelon of conferences and it’s only going to get better and better with these teams’ recruiting. I think all these schools believe in basketball. It’s important for the university.”
The conference’s overhaul, forced by football-motivated departures, was completed this year with the exits of Pittsburgh, Syracuse and Notre Dame along with the decision by the Big East to make basketball its top priority. That put Rutgers, Louisville, Cincinnati and South Florida into the American Athletic Conference. Recently established basketball programs Xavier, Creighton and Butler joined the Big East to complete the transformation.
St. John’s will try and do its part in trying to gain conference street cred, which could be crucial come March, when the Johnnies open their season against Big Ten powerhouse Wisconsin. The Red Storm have gone 30-35 over the past two seasons after reaching the NCAA Tournament in Steve Lavin’s first season in Queens. Expectations are high again with a team that has gained experience the past two years and will be joined by top recruit Rysheed Jordan.
“I think Jordan means a lot,” Raftery said. “I think they have great leadership with Jordan in the backcourt now. If [D’Angelo] Harrison’s head is there and he buys in, that’s a pretty good backcourt. And then up front [Orlando] Sanchez can make 3’s and [Jakarr] Sampson’s the real deal. They have to get that shutout mentality that great teams have where they are going to button down and make things tough for you.”
Finding that mentality is no given, though. Harrison is coming off a season that saw him suspended in the middle of the team’s pursuit for an NCAA Tournament bid. Jordan will bring talent, but he is still a freshman.
“I think they need their attention gathered, particularly on the defensive end because there’s going to be a lot of nights when, even with their extraordinary ability, they are going to have trouble ringing the bell — when they aren’t shooting the ball well, not making good judgments,” Raftery said. “But if they really sit down, work on their defense, this team can win the league. That’s the kind of talent they have.”
As for Raftery, he is in transition himself.
In June the former Seton Hall coach left ESPN after 32 years to join FOX Sports, where he will continue calling Big East games, now with Gus Johnson.
“I saw this as a nice way to go out, but I am not ready to go out, yet,” said Raftery, who will continue to call NCAA Tournament games for CBS come March.