I'll enjoy the Big East tournament more in the next few seasons regardless because St Johns should be good, but the idea that the tournament will be as competitive and have the same fan support is silly.
Syracuse basketball is irreplaceable for the Big East in terms of fan support. And college sports will always be about the coaches; the BE loses Boeheim, Dixon, Brey, and Huggins ... that's not offset by Josh Pastner and Fran Dunphy.
I'm excited about Memphis, but look to Louisville as a guide for what to expect from their fans. Does Lousiville travel well? Eh.. They're tremendous at home. On the road, they're above average. They're certainly not Syracuse, and I would say Pittsburgh has more fan support most years at the BE. In the end Memphis is a nice addition, but you're losing an irreplaceable program in Cuse, two teams with 15 years of history in the conference, and ND. Memphis makes up for Pittsburgh, and Temple can replace WVU in terms of talent and fan support. But that still leaves Syracuse and Notre Dame. Two of the biggest names in college sports, not to mention biggest alumni bases in NYC.
In 8 of the last 12 seasons Syracuse or Pittsburgh have had the best regular season record in the Big East. You can't lose your two best teams and expect the tournament not to lose something!
Again, I could care less if the BE tournament is considered the best, or if it's on par with the Pac-12, or SEC. What does that matter to me? I want to see St Johns win, and the conference turmoil won't have a big effect on us.
BUT, you can't replace the teams the BE is losing and not expect the tournament to lose a little something.