For the past few years (possibly decades), there has been one certainty that supersedes all others when it comes to the NBA: the Western Conference is superior to the Eastern Conference in nearly every way imaginable.
NBA: A Tale of Two Conferences
There are plenty of reasons to believe in this theory. For one thing, every year that the Western Conference has a 50-win team not make the playoffs while the Eastern Conference has a sub-.500 team make the playoffs certainly strengthens this argument. The performance of Eastern Conference teams (not named the Miami Heat) in the NBA Finals for the past decade has been, at best, abysmal. There are plenty of reasons to say that the Western Conference is far superior to the Eastern Conference, and every writer in the known universe could make an easy claim to this fact. However, for those who like something a little different, here’s a question: is the gap between the East and West closer than we think?
Before the argument about team records begins, I will admit: yes, the East is still weak top-to-bottom; unfortunately, it is uncertain how long this will last. And the West has more winning teams than the East, but let’s take a look at the conferences from top-to-bottom for a minute. At the All-Star Break, the overall record of the Western Conference was 423-373 (.531 winning percentage); the overall record of the Eastern Conference was 375-425 (.469 winning percentage). So top-to-bottom, only six percentage points separate the entirety of the two conferences, which is definitely closer than many would guess.
Another statistic that shows these conferences are closer than they appear is the records of one conference versus the other. The overall record of the Eastern Conference against their Western Conference opponents is 132-182 (.420 winning percentage), and the overall record of the Western Conference against their Eastern Conference opponents 182-132 (.580 winning percentage). Again, while there is a disparity here, it is not as large as most would assume.
Taking a look at the cellars of the two conferences shows a few interesting facts. For instance, there are actually more teams with fewer than 20 wins in the Western Conference (the Jazz, Kings, Lakers and Timberwolves) than there are in the Eastern Conference (the Magic, 76ers and Knicks).
Looking even further, the future of the Eastern Conference just looks brighter than that of the West. The Atlanta Hawks, arguably the best team in basketball, has a plethora of players coming into their prime that has a 15-4 record against Western Conference opponents. The Raptors and Wizards, each with a young backcourt, are just reaching their primes as basketball teams, and the plethora of young talent in the Eastern Conference, such as the 76ers and the Celtics, makes fans of the Eastern Conference highly excited. Meanwhile the Western Conference, as talented and top-heavy as it is, has many teams that are reaching the end of their primes. Most of the teams in the Western Conference lean on players in their early-to-mid-30’s, and while the Spurs have proven that that doesn’t always equal a team in decline, they seem to be in the minority rather than the majority.
Maybe it’s the thinnest argument in the world. Maybe it’s the start of a changing of the guard in the NBA. Either way, what can’t be argued is that this season, the Eastern Conference is making basketball fans and pundits alike pay attention to their quality of basketball which hasn’t happened in quite a while. This might just be a singular year of success but for hopeful fans of Eastern Conference basketball, this could be the turning point for the debate between the East and the West.
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