Butler considers move to Atlantic 10...

[Big Mike]

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/college/chi-report-butler-ponders-move-to-atlantic-10-20120312,0,2341673.story

I'd love to have Butler in the MVC...looks like there sights are set higher?

[Canton BU fan]

I don't necessarily disagree with the reasons stated for considering the A 10. However, the MVC is the better basketball league most years in my opinion.

[BUFanatic]

A-10 is overrated imho. I'm not a huge fan of the Pac 12 Either tho.

[TheAsianSensation]

No real surprise here.

A bit of a godsend for the A-10. One of their big needs is a Midwest school who can travel partner with St Louis and bridge that gap. Finding a midwest school who wants to be in an east coast conference isn't easy, but it's such a big step up from the Horizon for Butler.

I don't think Butler would've listened to Elgin the past few years; I think they were waiting for this.

[Da Coach]

The Atlantic-10 is and always will be centered on the eastern teams. Butler would be making a huge mistake moving to the A-10, just like Rick Majerus believes they made a big mistake and should get out.

http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/3648/majerus-still-ranting-on-a-10

Butler will be the ugly step-child among the bigger boys in the A-10.
I know everything is about money, and the A-10 has a lot more of it than the Horizon, but IMO this is like selling your soul for money.

[thefish7]

To be fair, there are three midwestern teams near to Butler, if you count Dayton and Xavier. I can see how this makes some sense, but there's a ton of trash in the A10 also. I think a Butler move here might only last a few years.

[TheAsianSensation]

To be fair, there are three midwestern teams near to Butler, if you count Dayton and Xavier. I can see how this makes some sense, but there's a ton of trash in the A10 also. I think a Butler move here might only last a few years.

I think the trash in the A-10 may have taken itself out. The consensus trash going into the year was St Bonaventure/LaSalle/Duquesne/Fordham. Now Bonaventure is in the field of 68 and LaSalle got rid of the school that dominated their market in Philly. And I would not be shocked to hear Fordham-to-the-Patriot any year now.

Butler just has to ask itself if the east coast exposure is worth it, because competition-wise, it is.

(Also, when the Big East splits, it'll be easier for Butler to get in on that action from the A-10 than the Horizon. Warrants mentioning)

[Da Coach]

No question the competition is better in the A-10 than the Horizon. It always will be. But playing in the Horizon hasn't hurt Butler, has it? let's see if they have the kind of national attention and NCAA success if they move to the A-10. I predict not.
I don't blame them for looking to do better than the Horizon, but this move hurts them in a lot of ways.

[TheAsianSensation]

I think national exposure increases, not decreases, with the move. They do lose BracketBusters but gain a few conference games a year that can draw more eyeballs to them than any Horizon league game could.

This trickle-down effect is starting to touch the Valley:
1) Elgin really doesn't need to expand to 12, but if he ever wanted to, his last avenue to do so (Butler) is about to close
2) The Horizon probably wants to go back to 10 (they have a travel partner system set up that's similar to the Pac-12). It would be unexpected, but I wouldn't be shocked if Evansville moves down to fill Butler's gap. IUPUI/IPFW aren't big enough to make the leap up, IMO. Northern Kentucky could be a name to watch in a few years.
3) Pay attention to the Alliance - with Hawaii as a football only, and with Air Force looking to park their non-football down a tier somewhere, the Alliance will be looking for a couple basketball-only members. If I'm Creighton/Wichita, I'm not making the leap, but I'm also not hanging up the phone yet.

[Indy_BB]

I don't necessarily disagree with the reasons stated for considering the A 10. However, the MVC is the better basketball league most years in my opinion.

Here is the chart since 80-81 - http://statsheet.com/mcb/conferences...valley&c1=a-10

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And that's before adding a program that's Top 5 in the country in wins over the last decade.

Are people THAT deluded to what the Valley actually is? Its a moderate step-up from the Horizon League. Its not the A-10.

[SFP]

I have no idea what these schools are really thinking. If Butler makes the move I hope they have a stipulation that they can leave it when they want. The real answer for all these schools is to create a dynamic mid-west conference in conjunction or affiliation with another east-coast dynamic conference. It's time for teams to re-brand and create something where the sum of their parts is greater. This means buying into scholastic integrity, demographic (media revenue) and fan support. Holding unto the past will only hurt these programs in the long run.

[Indy_BB]

Apparently, this is pretty much a done deal and they are working out the final details.

Charlotte will be leaving the A10 for the Sun Belt and UMass will be leaving at some point in the near future for similar reasons (football)

The A10 is moving west, becoming nearly completely private, and sized to be the elite non BCS conference in the country.

[Fetz86]

Maybe they can pick a new name to reflect their new demographic.

[tornado]

These guys say Butler to the A-10 is a..
DONE DEAL

http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-basketball/2012/3/20/2887986/butler-basketball-atlantic-10-move-conference-realignment-horizon-league

[JMM28]

Don't be surprised if this hits the Valley very soon.