The Battle 4 Atlantis is great hoops in a ballroom

For starters, let us praise the basketball at the Battle 4 Atlantis. UNC, Wisconsin, Florida, UCLA, Georgetown and Oklahoma are all top-26 Kenpom squads; Butler’s No. 57 and UAB’s a dud, but that’s six very good teams, one good team and one bad team. (UPDATE: Butler beat UNC convincingly, so let’s say seven very good teams.) No other early season tourney has this many good teams, and it isn’t really close.

But before we talk about that, we have to talk about where this is being held:

(Actually, that might just be blue lighting, but whatever.)

Yup, we’re in a hotel ballroom, complete with club lighting:

This is at the Atlantis resort in the Bahamas, a place we will see ads for every few minutes and think about laying on the beach, going snorkeling and going on waterslides and stuff. This is the biggest room there, and it’s set up for, like, conferences and dancing and stuff, but now has a basketball court in it.

Part of the allure of the Maui Invitational is that it’s great basketball in a high school bandbox in Hawaii. Part of the allure of this is that it’s great basketball in a place that clearly isn’t meant for basketball.

It’s November. Good teams are playing basketball in weird places. And each of those carries idiosyncrasies -- like BEING UNDERWATER WHEEEEEEEE -- that make it unique and cool and we’re OK with it.