Coach K says NCAA can’t afford to cancel March Madness this year.
During the first two weeks of March, many college basketball teams were gearing up to play in their conference tournament and then hopefully move on to the NCAA tournament where they would have a chance to compete for a national title. But at the same time, the coronavirus was beginning to spread rapidly throughout the United States.
The NCAA first barred fans from attending any conference tournaments, as well as the NCAA tournament. Then on March 12, the NCAA announced the cancelation of all spring and winter sports, including March Madness.
Now as fall approaches, many are hoping that college basketball will be able to take place. Various ideas have been brought up in order to make playing safer, such as placing the players in a bubble and moving back the start date of the season.
Despite health concerns, the NCAA is under a great deal of financial pressure to ensure that basketball occurs and that they are able to have an NCAA tournament. And these concerns are apparent to legendary Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski.
Coach K pointed to the NCAA’s lost revenue from the tournament’s cancellation
Krzyzewski said that the NCAA receives 98 percent or more of its revenue from the NCAA tournament, and as a result they cannot afford to cancel the tournament again like they did this past season.
The tournament does generate over 90 percent of the NCAA’s income, and canceling the tournament back in March cost them $375 million. So it certainly seems clear that the NCAA will be under huge financial pressure to ensure that a tournament happens.
In order to ensure a season and a tournament, NCAA officials are seriously considering pushing back the current Nov. 10 start date of the season that already poses a problem for Pac-12 teams who are not allowed to play any games until the new year.
But Krzyzewski said that he would support the tournament if it was pushed back and that he just wants to have one no matter the changes that need to be made. And many players and fans would certainly agree with him.