I think it makes the league collectively that much more difficult.
This potential hire + Gillespie at Tech is going to make the Big XII even more brutal than it already is. Hopefully OU airballs.
Absolutely. Gillespie was much more of an impact hire, IMO, because that's a basement team that could start to ascend pretty quickly, and now we have to play them twice a year instead of once, making that road game that much more difficult.
I mean, really, when you look at it top to bottom, this league is insane:
Kansas - Bill Self
Kansas State - Frank Martin
Missouri - Matt Painter (?)
Texas - Rick Barnes
Texas A&M - Mark Turgeon
Texas Tech - Billy Gillespie
Baylor - Scott Drew (Only here because he gets talent. Once the NCAA finally hammers him, we'll remove him from the list.)
I mean, who are the weak links? Travis Ford? Hoiberg? Good lord; that's brutal. Oklahoma will go out and get someone decent, so that will continue to make them a tough out.
All I know is that this league is going to provide some fantastic basketball in the next few years, and the coaches are going to be colorful, engaging, and fun to watch. I'm thrilled that we dropped two teams if I get to see 18 games of this every year.