Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I will make the same argument that I always make about realignment and reformatting divisions, etc., the bigger issue is the ineptitude of the GM for these teams. The Sixers are purposefully losing, Detroit added two me-first type player in Brandon Jennings and Josh Smith a couple of years ago that make it impossible to build chemistry, New York is in the process of rebuilding, and Charlotte not only lost Josh McRoberts but that also added Lance Stephenson who appears to cause locker room issues on teams (see Indiana's team in 2nd half of last year).
The point is, at some point, at least some of these teams are going to figure out how to build a winning roster and it's going to make realignment pointless. The reason why the league is so imbalanced is because there are so many people in front office positions that have no idea what they are doing and it just so happens that most of them are in the Eastern conference. This is such a horrible era of basketball because it seems as though very few teams are capable of constructing winning teams. The NBA clearly has a bigger issue which is why you have teams like the Spurs and the Heat/Cavs constantly going to the finals year after year. There is an issue with competitive balance and that starts from the top of these organizations.
The reason those teams are generally so bad is that the OWNERS hire bad GM's or meddle in the affairs of the GM so much that they dork things up.
The Knicks are the poster child for this phenomenon but now with the hiring of PJ.....they might be doing better in that regard but I'm still skeptical that we'll see PJ quit in disgust in a few years with those jokers.
Basketball, with a 7 game playoff by it's very nature lends itself to dynasties. A stellar player plays both ways and 40/48 minutes. The NFL by comparison is the most variable but the sport is violent, people get hurt much more often and they play just one game to advance.
By the nature of the sport and 7 game series Basketball falls somewhere between the NFL and individual sports like boxing, tennis etc. where a single person often dominates for years and years.
P.S. There have also been a string of injuries in recent years to teams that could have challenged the Heat or Spurs more along the road to the finals. Bulls, Indy, OKC etc. At a minimum it sure made the EC playoffs extra boring in recent years.
The reason those teams are generally so bad is that the OWNERS hire bad GM's or meddle in the affairs of the GM so much that they dork things up.
Bingo. The owners do a terrible job managing the teams and they often hire those individuals that ruin the teams or they ruin the teams themselves.
Something to consider too, the Eastern conference teams will still have an advantage over the West because most of their games will be against these same scrub teams, while the West will beat up on each other. If you have a schedule that consist of Indiana, Brooklyn and Milwaukee, that is much different than playing teams like Phoenix, Sacramento and New Orleans and so the teams in the east would still have a better chance of making the playoffs.
Bingo. The owners do a terrible job managing the teams and they often hire those individuals that ruin the teams or they ruin the teams themselves.
Something to consider too, the Eastern conference teams will still have an advantage over the West because most of their games will be against these same scrub teams, while the West will beat up on each other. If you have a schedule that consist of Indiana, Brooklyn and Milwaukee, that is much different than playing teams like Phoenix, Sacramento and New Orleans and so the teams in the east would still have a better chance of making the playoffs.
The east has typically had at least enough at the very top to fight for the NBA title each year.....but in terms of your 1st and 2nd round playoff appearances you are correct and it's just not close and like I mentioned, exacerbated by injuries.
So, I don't think anybody won a championship because of it...the earlier rounds there is no question.
The problem there is that given the dynasty nature of teams given the nature of the sport you have to look at AT LEAST a 20-30 period but then that muddies the waters due to all of the ownership changes, expansions and whatnot over that time period.
I knew the Sixers had a chance. T'Wolves were just coming back from a West Coast trip, and those first games home after a trip are usually the "stub your toe" game. Think they'll definitely beat the Pistons now on Saturday too.
I forgot like more than half (3 of 5) of our starters were out (Rubio, Pec AND Martin).
I guess it takes a totally different perspective on the matter. But still.
It doesn't matter, yall were only down 73-72 with 2 mins left
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
