Is it better to go deep in the NIT or lose in first round of NCAA's

This season, I would vote for the former.

This is such a stupid question. frick the NIT you want NCAA experience no matter what

The NIT is for losers

Its a consolation tournament

Always the NCAA. You’re on the bracket that millions fill out. The big dance. Do you even know who won the NIT last year? Much less who “went deep” into it?

Well it probably depends on what you mean by better. Some postseason experience is better than none. Losing in a play in game or 1st round isn’t glorious, but it’s still better than NIT. Although the rules change should improve the NIT

NCAAs

Not even close

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Objectively it's always better to make NCAAT, for a myriad of reasons.

Subjectively, I'd rather a deep NIT run this year as it means I get to watch more games.

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This team has shown a few flashes of being better than their record and a few of being worse. They have met or surpassed most reasonable expectations for the season.

So your answer is the right answer if we are talking about where this team belongs and a non-AQ bid to the NCAA this year. My one caveat is if the team somehow puts together a run in the SECT and wins it, then I feel like winning that tournament would be the equivalent of a deep NIT run, actually probably better. At that point anything you do in the big dance is lagniappe for this LSU team.

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It's always better to go deep in the NIT than to get booted first round of The Dance

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Said no one ever.

Always the NCAA

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It seems like winning or going deep in the NIT builds momentum and experience for the next season (a

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Getting bounced by 40 in the 1st round of the NCAAT is better than winning the NIT. You can't sell anything NIT related to recruits. You can sell a big improvement from Year 1 to Year 2, but no recruits care about the NIT.

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assuming some underclassmen are returning).

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This is the thing. You can't assume ANY underclassmen are returning in 2024. Most rosters are almost completely turned over from season to season these days, and even with the few that may wind up hanging on to most of their guys, I don't think NIT momentum carries over in any meaningful way to the next season.

I think it's a nice opportunity for some teams--like this LSU team--to continue playing basketball together for a little longer (particularly for some that the may wind up being the last time they every play competitive basketball to put on the uni another time (s) and that may be a nice little reward for them if they like each other and enjoy playing together. I hope that's the case with this LSU team considering the drastic improvement they made in the SEC, some of the nice wins they had and exceeding, granted relatively low, expectations. But I don't know.

Some teams--like the Ben Simmons one here and some of the more consistent, Sweet 16-type NCAA tourney programs--would probably rather just not even play in the NIT and just start working towards their individual futures. I hope that's not the makeup of this LSU team, but I have no idea.

The NIT--especially if you host the 1st round or 2--is also a nice, little reward for the hard core fans who came out all year and supported an up-and-down team that really was never gonna be a legit contender to get into the NCAA tourney, to get to see the team at home for a final time or 2.

So again, you'd rather get beat by 40 in the 1st round of the NCAA than to win the NIT. However, once that does't become an option and you find yourself in the NIT, you may as well go out and try to win the thing. Or at least make as deep a run as possible. It may not "help" in the slightest as far as the next year's team's performance, but it obviously can't hurt anything.