Longer Pennsylvanias or wider Tennessees

Would the US Navy have benefited more from lengthened Pennsylvania-class cruisers with extra eight-inch guns than from the wider, ten-inch-gun Tennessee class?

A longer hull could improve speed and perhaps range, but both approaches involved real advantages, so the answer depends on which operational qualities the navy valued most.

There is no universally superior successor. Lengthening the Pennsylvania design could create more speed and possibly greater cruising endurance, while the wider Tennessee solution supported a different balance built around larger weapons. Cruiser design begins with mission priorities rather than a single best dimension or caliber.