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Kentucky, UNC, Kansas, Michigan, UConn in discussions with big new blue blood-laden college basketball event
College basketball's next huge regular-season event is in the works and, if it materializes as planned, will give the sport another massive must-see attraction.
The proposal — currently in the latter planning stages — is an eight-team pool-play event called the "Diamond Cup" that would debut for the 2027-28 men's basketball season, sources told CBS Sports. If it comes together as designed, the Diamond Cup will be blue blood-laden and, in addition to the Players Era Tournament, bolster the mainstream appeal of college basketball's opening month in a way that's never been done before.
The eight schools involved in deep discussions — but, as many sources stressed, are not yet signed — represent the lion's share of the most storied and accomplished programs in college hoops history: Arizona, Connecticut, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan and North Carolina. Seven of those schools have been in talks with Diamond Cup stakeholders since last summer; Duke bowed out earlier this spring due to its three-game contract with Amazon Prime Video, which starts later this year. (More on that below.)
Report: IU basketball tied to major new nonconference event beginning in 2027
CBS Sports’ Matt Norlander is reporting IU basketball is one of eight major college basketball programs expected to be part of a significant new annual nonconference event beginning in 2027.
The November event, being referred to as the Diamond Cup, is expected to include Arizona, Connecticut, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan and North Carolina.
Each team is expected to play two games in connection with the event initially in 2027, with as many as four games expected in later years, Norlander reported. All of the games are expected to be on neutral floors. A location for the 2027 event has not been reported, but Norlander is reporting the first year is likely to be consolidated into one week at one location around Thanksgiving.
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Report: Michigan in talks to join Diamond Cup
Michigan is one of eight teams involved in conversations to join a newly formed college basketball event, as first reported by CBS Sports.
The newly formed Diamond Cup would feature eight of the highest-profile teams in college basketball — Arizona, Connecticut, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan and North Carolina — with unprecedented payouts and NIL funds. It is backed by William Morris Endeavor (WME) and IMG among others.
The details and format of the Diamond Cup have shifted from the original premise in the summer of 2025. The initial pitch was a four-game series for every team (16 games per season overall) on a three-year contract starting in 2027-28. That format includes three regular-season matchups and, to start, one October exhibition game that would nonetheless count toward the Diamond Cup’s pool-play results to determine a champion. The initial eight schools were lobbied in 2025 on the premise that they could make approximately $17 million over the course of the deal, sources said, provided the optimal media rights package could be sold.
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