Earlier this month, the Big 12 publicized its pursuit of potential new members after months of speculation about expansion. Those contenders have been measured by their football prowess. We understand. Thats the driving force in collegiate athletics.But wed like Bob Bowlsby, the Big 12s commissioner, to consider the hardwood implications of any expansion-related decisions. Were here to help. If basketball were the only part of the equation, here are the best options to increase the leagues on-court swagger (in reverse order):10. Boise State BroncosCoach Leon Rice inherited a Boise State program that finished below .500 in five of the nine seasons before he was hired prior to the 2010-11 season. Boise State has won 20 or more games in each of the past four seasons under Rice. The Broncos captured the 2014-15 Mountain West conference crown, and they reached the NCAA tournament twice (2013, 2015) in recent years. Last years squad failed to hit its ceiling. But Boise State continues to assemble the personnel to compete on the national stage.9. New Mexico LobosThe Big 12s best venues possess unique personalities that have helped the league send 70 percent of its membership to the two most recent NCAA tournaments. Its difficult to grab a home win at Kansas, Iowa State or Oklahoma State. New Mexicos rowdy, sunken home atmosphere, the Pit, fits with those intimidating Big 12 home venues. The Lobos finished in the top 25 in attendance last season. They havent reached the NCAA tournament since 2014, but their loyal supporters remain.8. SMU MustangsWe know. Weird stuff has been happening at SMU. The Emanuel Mudiay situation. Last years NCAA issues and the postseason ban. Larry Browns offseason departure. But the Big 12 should consider SMU, and not just because its a growing program based in Americas ninth-largest city. The Dallas-based program also makes sense because the Mustangs have turned Moody Coliseum into one of the games most underrated venues. Their fans nearly filled the arena (capacity 7,000) every night (6,907 average attendance) last year. You can build on that support.7. San Diego State AztecsWell talk basketball later. Do you know how many Big 12 schools would fly to San Diego early to prep for SDSU? All of them. Yes, the beach is nice. And thats included in this evaluation. Last season, the program nearly averaged a sellout (12,209) all season. Its student section, The Show, is one of college basketballs most vibrant groups. They turn Viejas Arena into a party every night for an SDSU program that has become a national player under coach Steve Fisher. The school has won five of the past six Mountain West championships. And did we mention the beach?6. UNLV RebelsYes, Marvin Menzies is the programs fourth basketball coach since January. Its a long story. But the Runnin Rebels boast a legacy and location that position Menzies to hit the reboot button in the coming years and help UNLV regain its national standing. The school might never experience the Larry Johnson Era again, but it can rise and become a perennial NCAA tournament team.5. Temple OwlsIf you want to add more grit to the talented Big 12 basketball scene, throw Temple into the mix. Temple also brings continuity. The program has had just five coaches since 1942. Fran Dunphy has been with the program since John Chaney retired in 2006. Plus, the Owls would enhance the talent pool in the Big 12. Theyve reached the NCAA tournament in seven of the past nine years.4. BYU CougarsThe Cougars could pursue their initial, prospective admission to the Big 12 as a football-only transition. The goal, per BYU brass, would be full membership if the Big 12 welcomed the program to the league. The Cougars would not hurt the conferences basketball stock, either. Theyve won 25 or more games in eight of the past 10 seasons. The outliers were 24- and 23-win campaigns in 2013 and 2014, respectively. BYU has missed the NCAA tournament only twice since 2007.3. Cincinnati BearcatsCincinnati hasnt missed the NCAA tournament since 2010. Coach Mick Cronin has rebuilt the program in the post-Bob Huggins years with a tenacious defensive style that keeps the Bearcats alive, regardless of the opponent. Theyre always in the mix. They always have a chance. The Big 12 wants to add a successful program to its fold. Well, Cincy has failed to finish a season in KenPom.coms top 50 just four times since 2002. Theyve missed the top 100 only once in that stretch. The Bearcats are solid and consistent.2. Memphis TigersThe rich history of the program that Larry Finch built and Penny Hardaway, Lorenzen Wright and Derrick Rose blessed with their talents would enhance the Big 12s dominance on the national scene. Memphis expects the best from its Tigers. Struggles in the post-John Calipari years included four consecutive NCAA tournament appearances from 2011 through 2014. The school boasts great facilities and boosters, and the passion in the Memphis community for college hoops rivals that of any fan base in the country.1. Connecticut HuskiesName the only program with four national championships since 1999. Its not Duke (three national championships in that stretch) or North Carolina (two). The answer is Connecticut. The Huskies won in 1999, 2004, 2011 and 2014. Due to academic issues, they were banned from the postseason in 2012-13. But UConn is a modern powerhouse with 10 Elite Eight appearances since 1990. If the Big 12 decides to make a basketball-only decision, UConn should be its first choice. Wholesale Custom Colts Shirts . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. Custom Colts Jerseys .com) - Manchester City midfielder David Silva is expected to miss the next four weeks because of a calf problem. http://www.customcoltsjersey.com/ . - Derek Wolfe says hes finally healthy after suffering a seizure in November that doctors now believe was related to the spinal cord injury he suffered in the preseason. Colts Jerseys China . - Blake Griffin had 30 points and 12 rebounds, J. Custom Rock Ya-Sin Jersey . -- Damian Lillard and LaMarcus Alrdridge were again the go-to duo for the Trail Blazers against the Kings. If Tom Brady woke up Saturday morning in desperate need of good news, this bulletin might qualify: His big-game loss to Roger Goodell wont dramatically impact his historical standing in pro football any more than his two big-game losses to Eli Manning did.Brady can still go down as the greatest quarterback -- maybe the greatest player -- in NFL history. His Deflategate sin belongs in the venial basket, at a safe distance from the mortal sports sins committed by the likes of Pete Rose, Barry Bonds and Lance Armstrong.In other words, his Friday surrender wont make it into the first paragraph of his obituary decades down the road. That obit will surely include Bradys four-game suspension for his alleged involvement in the deflation of footballs the New England Patriots used in the AFC Championship Game victory over the Indianapolis Colts two seasons ago, but the misdemeanor crime and punishment wont shape the story of Bradys football life. This weekend, it only seems that way.Though coaches often say there are no losers in tight, hard-fought games, there were clearly no winners in this one, Goodell included. The commissioner mightve had his near-absolute authority notarized, but he cant possibly believe this 18-month debacle served what hes highly paid to protect -- the best interests of his league. Deflategate was a four-ring circus that effectively and mercifully ended when Brady decided his pursuit of a record fifth Super Bowl ring could be compromised if he won a temporary stay of his suspension while trying to take his case to the Supreme Court.The timing was too perilous to mess with. Understanding that his backup, Jimmy Garoppolo, can go 2-2 or 3-1 for a man, Bill Belichick, who once coached Matt Cassel to an 11-5 season, Brady made like Belichick at the coin toss and deferred. He was on to Cleveland, Week 5. Patriots owner Robert Kraft blasted the NFLs investigation, again, and those voices subscribing to the Ideal Gas Law reminded all that the leagues conclusions had crumbled under the weight of scientific scrutiny.But if the NFLs science really was junk, the circumstantial evidence was not. Most agenda-free observers thought it wouldve been wise long ago for Brady to make an admission of some kind and accept a lesser punishment, but the quarterback refused to take that snap and drop to a knee. He raged against Goodells system for as long as he could stomach the fight, then took the loss. Brady thanked every supporter in his Facebook concession speech except Richard M. Berman, the U.S. District Court judge who tried and failed to free him.The 2016 Patriots will be fine because the Patriots are always fine in the AFC East of the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills?and?New York Jets. Ever since Brady became a starter early in the 2001 sseason, one quarterback other than Brady -- one -- has managed to win an AFC East title (Chad Pennington did it for the 2002 Jets, and for the 2008 Dolphins, who won after Brady went down for the season in Week 1).dddddddddddd Go ahead and look around the division. Nothing much has changed. Ryan Tannehill, Tyrod Taylor and Ryan Fitzpatrick/Geno Smith for 16 games still isnt nearly as good as Tom Brady for 12.So the short-term damage will be minimal. Garoppolo looks pretty good for a backup, and now the Patriots will get a valuable four-game look at Bradys potential successor after the benched franchise player turns 39 (on Aug. 3).Long term? Now were talking about the L-word -- legacy -- and whether Deflategate will stick to Bradys. The quarterback didnt get caught using performance-enhancing drugs, and didnt get busted for gambling on his sport. He did allegedly know his equipment guys were tampering with those game balls, and he did ditch a cell phone that investigators wanted to view. One of the two 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals judges who would overturn Bermans ruling and uphold Bradys suspension, Denny Chin, said there was compelling evidence that the quarterback knew about [improper ball deflation], consented to it, encouraged it. The other judge, Barrington Parker, said Bradys explanation for why he destroyed his phone made no sense whatsoever.Brady badly hurt his own cause, and so this dark Deflategate comedy will forever remain a part of his career. But on truth serum, even the most narrow-minded Jets fans would admit that Brady became the dominant player of his generation by outplaying, outworking and outsmarting opponents, and not by cheating. Of course, the second half of that AFC Championship Game would be their Exhibit A.In the end, Brady can surpass Joe Montana (and Johnny Unitas and Peyton Manning) as the presumed greatest quarterback ever, and compete with Jim Brown, Jerry Rice and Lawrence Taylor for the unofficial title of greatest all-time player. One more championship, as Brady closes hard on his 40th birthday, would make for a stronger oral argument than any made on his behalf in the courtroom.Meanwhile, as Goodell does his end zone dance, Brady can find some comfort in the notion that he will recover from Deflategate, just as he recovered from those deflating Super Bowl losses to Eli and the Giants. Hell just need a little time to heal, a little room to breathe. This surreal case hurt him, no question, but it didnt destroy him or severely diminish him.More than anything, it reminded starstruck fans that nobody is perfect, not even a dimpled four-time champ with a supermodel wife. ' ' '