The first month or so of the season has been a strange one for the Big 12. Somehow, the league that boasts a solid Kansas team, a team that beat Kentucky in Lexington and a contender for freshman of the year is having an identity crisis.

Few Big 12 teams seem to be in a rhythm so far this season. Maybe that’s to be expected -- Baylor has a handful of new freshmen, Texas is missing a key player, and West Virginia and Iowa State have an influx of transfers.

The Big 12 may be one of the most interesting leagues from top to bottom in 2012-13, but the smart pick at the top remains, as always, Kansas.

The Jayhawks have won at least a share of the last eight Big 12 regular season titles, including the last four outright. Thomas Robinson is gone from Lawrence, but Bill Self again has stars ready to emerge.

The Big 12’s trade of Missouri and Texas A&M for West Virginia and TCU appears to be a small downgrade as far as basketball is concerned.

One of the unfortunate truths of the latest wave of conference realignment is the overwhelming focus on football.

As a result, basketball and other sports have been of secondary concern in some circles. In others, such as at Butler and VCU and in the Horizon, Colonial and Ohio Valley, basketball is the primary engine of revenue. Almost every league in some way has been impacted by the dominoes of realignment.