rlh04d wrote:But if you want an actual refutation of his point: Wichita and Omaha both have large arenas the teams can play basketball at. Of the two, only Wichita's has actually hosted NBA games, so "NBA caliber" is a pretty empty boast when you've never hosted an NBA team. Of the two, only the Intrust Bank Arena can actually be called "NBA caliber." Because the NBA has deemed it so. To be precise, Intrust would be "NBA caliber," while CenturyLink would be "NBA D-League caliber." Search "CenturyLink" and "NBA" together and the only results you'll find are NBA D-League showcases and Creighton fans claiming it's NBA caliber. Seems like you're trying to convince yourselves of something.
I want to thank my Shocker friend rlh04d for another opportunity to correct shocking fallacies with facts. You might be surprised to learn that
the very first game ever held at CenturyLinkwas
not a Creighton game, but an NBA exhibition between the Timberwolves and Hawks. Just as much of an NBA game as the Thunder exhibitions at Intrust.
Besides the fact it's hosted the NBA, Creighton fans claim an NBA caliber arena based on this quote from Steward Mandel in
Sports Illustrated, 2/20/2006:
“Creighton is the league’s crown jewel. It boasts an NBA-caliber arena, the CenturyLink Center Omaha, where the Bluejays average 14,387 fans.” rlh04d wrote:Recruiting between Wichita State and Creighton would also refute your point about it drawing recruits. WSU has consistently brought in equivalent or higher rated recruits in recent years, with lowly Koch Arena.
Don't know about recent years, but this year WSU has commits from 2 Rivals 3-stars, while CU has 1 Rivals 3-star and a 4-star. Seems fairly even. I seem to have a higher opinion of Koch than you... wouldn't call it "lowly." It provides quite the home-court advantage. Has terrible sight lines on TV, though.
rlh04d wrote:WSU has plenty of games being carried by TV this season, more than Creighton had last season.
ESPN3 isn't TV. It's a webcast. Fox 1 is TV.
rlh04d wrote:Renting off campus does allow you to sell beer, so I guess that's a point for you. Of course, you also have to schedule your games around rodeos, so that's a negative. And of course you lose out on a lot of revenue.
The rodeo's always in September. We did get booted for the US Figure Skating Championships last January, though. Caused a 3-game road trip. We do lose revenue on rent, but more than make it up on the new TV contract.
"When you lose a program like Creighton, there's no sugarcoating it," Elgin said. "It's a devastating loss. They're going to go on and have success in the league they've joined..." Jeff Eisenberg, Yahoo Sports, October 10, 2013.