Real Sports 4-13-19
LEBRON-LESS EASTERN CONFERENCE IS FALLING BEHIND THE POWERFUL WESTERN CONFERENCE EVEN MORE[edit | edit source]
When LeBron James left the Eastern Conference for the Los Angeles Lakers, the playing field was leveled for Eastern Conference contenders. But, it also made the difference between the two conferences even more distinct. Several Western Conference teams may miss out on the Playoffs while sub .500 teams from the East get in. Should this problem be addressed and rules changed?
When LeBron James left the Eastern Conference to go to the Los Angeles Lakers, teams like the Toronto Raptors, Boston Celtics, Philadelphia 76ers, and Indiana Pacers rejoiced. Their path to the NBA Finals was much clearer now that James was in another conference. For the past eight years James and his teams have dominated the Eastern Conference, finishing on top of the regular season standings twice, and going to the Finals eight straight times. No one could push the King off his mountain, but now he's gone. And now five teams are vying to become his heir. The Milwaukee Bucks, the Raptors, the Pacers, the 76ers, and the Celtics are now on top of the East, in that order. The Bucks and Raptors look like Finals contenders, and the 76ers and Celtics both have overcome slow starts to play up to their potential. The Pacers were under the radar Finals hopefuls, but a season ending knee injury to Victor Oladipo has squashed those hopes. There's little doubt that Milwaukee, Toronto, Boston, and Philadelphia will meet in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Whoever comes out on top is a mystery.
There's no doubt because outside of the Big 5, no Eastern Conference team has any chance of winning a postseason series. The Brooklyn Nets, Charlotte Hornets, and Detroit Pistons are Nos. 6 through 8, and the Miami Heat, Washington Wizards, and Orlando Magic could still make the Playoffs.** Of those six teams, only one has a winning record, and the rest are all at least three games under .500. The Charlotte Hornets are 27-30, yet would make the Playoffs if the season ended today. When this is contrasted to the Western Conference, it is embarrassing. The Eastern Conference has been playing catch up to the Western Conference for years, and even with the Big 5 it still is far, far away from the West. Minnesota, the 11th best team in the West, is 27-30. They would be tied with the 7th seed if they played in the East. Memphis, 14th in the West, would be in contention for a Playoff spot in the East. If the top sixteen teams in the NBA made the Playoffs, ten of them would be from the West. The West has only one truly bad team, the Phoenix Suns. The East however, has teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers, Atlanta Hawks, Chicago Bulls, and New York Knicks. Four of the five worst teams in the NBA play in the Eastern Conference.
The level of play in the West is just so much better than in the East. If the All-Star starters played an actual game as East vs West, there's no doubt who would win. The talent level of teams in the West is much higher than the East. LeBron's defection made it even worse. Over the past twenty years, fourteen of the NBA MVPs played in the Western Conference. Every active player with an MVP award (LeBron James, Kevin Durant, James Harden, Stephen Curry, Derrick Rose, Dirk Nowitzki) plays in the Western Conference. In fact, four of the All-Star starters from the West have MVP awards. Total, the Western Conference has eight, with at least another in reserve Russell Westbrook. The East still has superstars like Kawhi Leonard, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and Kyrie Irving and plenty of young talent like Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, and Jayson Tatum.
But the West has dominated the NBA for the past two decades. The West has claimed 14 NBA championships in the twenty years since Michael Jordan has retired, including four out of the past five. The Golden State Warriors are likely to make it five out of six in June. However, it seems unfair that teams that won't make the Playoffs from the West will have to watch a sub .500 team from the East play. But, until the whole Eastern Conference picks up their play, that is what's going to happen. Maybe NBA Commissioner Adam Silver could try to change the format of the Playoffs, allowing the best sixteen teams to advance, not eight from each conference. That might be helpful for a few years, but most of the time it will be pretty even. Right now the West is dominating, but it could change. Several stars are free agents this summer, and could impact the talent distribution. But if the East is still hurting a few years from now, something should be done.
**All records and standings as of the All-Star Break**
Sources:
"2018 - 2019 NBA Regular Season Standings." 2018-2019 NBA Regular Season Standings | NBA.com, NBA.com, www.nba.com/standings.