The Big 12 made its big announcement on Wednesday — a glass basketball floor.
The league dropped the released as promised, announcing a partnership with ASB GlassFloor today introduced a state-of-the-art full LED video sports floor for use at the Big 12 men’s and women’s basketball tournament. That I was not expecting. I think a lot of folks were expecting that to go another way, too. This was the announcement commissioner Brett Yormark touted last week during a Big 12 broadcast on Peacock.
Our Pete Mundo weighed in right after the release went out. I have a day job, so I had time to contemplate just a bit. It’s worth nothing that I have no experience with courts like this. I’ve never covered a team that has played on one and it doesn’t seem like any colleges have ever used it. It’s worth noting that on the ASB GlassFloor web site Kentucky did use one for its Big Blue Madness in 2024, but it doesn’t appear it used it for a game.
Here are four thoughts, questions and takeaways on the new court, along with some of the interesting things I came across on social media reacting to the court.
Was That … All?
The way that Yormark hyped this last week I would have thought Jesus was going to come down from heaven and give Kansas coach Bill Self a new heart. I remember reading the release and thinking, “Is that all?” I think I was expecting volume the way he talked and not one thing — and certainly not about a basketball floor.
To be fair, Yormark said that the announcement would “introduce elements never before seen in the college space.” That’s true. No team or conference has ever used a floor like this in competition.
But I spent most of the day trying to line up the hype with the announcement and I just couldn’t.
Why is the Big 12 Doing This?
Spend 10 minutes thinking about it and it’s easy to figure out. Yormark always seeks to differentiate his conference from the others. This certainly does that. No other league is using a floor like this for its conference tournament. Whether people like the floor or not, it will generate buzz — just like last year’s floor unveiling did. He likes free media and he’ll get plenty of it during tournament week.
It also has revenue generating potential. I can see the league integrating its sponsors on the floor in some way. It also gives the league flexibility to partner with sponsors on the fly and eliminate the lead time for campaigns. I’m sure the league has thought all of that through. This wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision. It’s likely been in the works for months.
Now, how MUCH revenue the league can generate out of this is my big question. I see this as a showpiece and not necessarily a money-maker, at least not directly.
I Have Concerns
My biggest is player safety. These players have been working on hardwood floors all season and now they’re moving to this at the biggest tournament of the conference season. This isn’t a Gene Hackman in “Hoosiers” tape-measure kind of thing, either. Playing surface matters.
The Orlando Sentinel’s Matt Murschel spoke to UCF’s players about the floor. The Knights used the court earlier this year because the company that makes it, ASB GlassFloor, is based in Orlando. That means that coaches like Johnny Dawkins were probably involved in the decision-making process as to whether to use the course, likely through their competition committee.
“I asked [the players] afterwards for feedback, because I was just curious,” Dawkins said. “They really liked it. It took a second to get used to it, but after that, it performed like a wood floor would perform.”
“It was pretty cool to play on the court like that,” said center Jeremy Foumena. “At first it felt different, but as you keep going back and forth, it feels the same.”
The release says the “…high-performance sports floor that meets the standards of modern hardwood courts.” That must be the goal. Players feel any change when it comes to playing surface. Hardwood behaves differently from synthetic courts. I suspect players will have something to say during the tournament. Cool factor is one thing. Something that hinders their ability to play is quite another.
For what it’s worth, the ASB site touts “slip-resistant ceramic dots” to create traction.
I also question how the league will use it. Among the uses highlighted:
“Immersive animations following key plays and moments.”
I suggest the league take the players’ and coaches’ temperatures on that during the women’s tournament. Anything that distracts them from the game should be off-limits. Cool factor aside, this is about basketball. If they look down and they’re seeing highlights while they’re playing that’s going to be distracting.
The release says this won’t “…compromising performance, durability, or student-athlete safety.” We’ll see.
Is This a Game-Changer?
It isn’t for me. But to be fair, I’m not the audience. I’m covering the tournament regardless. If I were a die-hard Big 12 basketball fan that goes to that tournament every year, I’m not sure I’d be thrilled about this. For the transient Big 12 fan, the one that goes to the tournament for something to do, it might land better.
Last year’s floor was a good example. It was distracting on television, but I reserved judgment until I got to Kansas City. You know what? The floor was not distracting in person. I’m going to be interested in contrasting this from watching it on television to seeing it in person when I’m there for the men’s tournament. In that respect, I’ll reserve judgment.
The Big 12 Tournament is about basketball and its fans. In those respects, I don’t see how this serves either.
