The East and West are miles apart when it comes to talent. Time to fix the NBA Playoffs format.
The Western Conference was ridiculously better than the Eastern Conference was last season, and it’s clear that now the West is even better with LeBron James heading to the Los Angeles Lakers. The NBA Playoffs will be a bloodbath in the West, while the Detroit Pistons are eyeing up a shot at homecourt advantage back East.
It’s finally time to switch from the two-conference system to a true meritocracy, where the best 16 teams are seeded 1-16 based on their regular season record. If the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets are clearly the best two teams in the NBA again, they should meet in the NBA Finals and be the last series fans get to watch.
Let’s go farther than simply making the bracket ignore conferences. The idea of having the top seeds pick their opponent has been floated before, and it’s a fun one. Imagine watching the live selection show and seeing who the Warriors (or whoever) determine is the weakest team in the lower eight playoff seeds.
That show would be must-see TV for NBA fans every single season, just as the All-Star draft should be. Forget about hurt feelings; this is the big leagues. Whichever team gets picked first would get a chance to prove the top seed wrong–up to seven chances at it, actually.
That amount of drama, in addition to a system that prioritizes getting the absolute best teams as far as possible, would improve the overall product of the NBA Playoffs. That might be necessary soon, as if any more stars leave the East the conference won’t have any left. Time to fix basketball, now that those pesky Dubs have ruined it again.
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