The NBA has undergone a lot of changes over the past few years and there might still be more on the way. According to ESPN’s Brian Windhorst, executives believe that the league is moving toward eliminating the standard East-West Conference divisions.
“As West coaches and executives grow exasperated looking at what records might qualify for the postseason in the East, they’re floating a concept. The NBA is slowly moving toward expansion, perhaps 2-3 years from now, with Seattle and Las Vegas as the top candidates. If that happens, there will potentially be a battle between the Mississippi River teams (the Minnesota Timberwolves, Memphis Grizzlies, and New Orleans Pelicans) to be the “fortunate” one to move East to balance the conferences at 16 clubs apiece. Instead of dealing with that thorny competition, West executives told ESPN they believe both issues can be corrected by dropping conferences altogether and seeding teams 1 through 16 regardless of geography.”
It’s no secret that the NBA is set to introduce expansion teams, with Las Vegas, Seattle, and Mexico City being the top candidates for a new franchise.
The conversation around balancing right now has picked up steam recently with the current state of the NBA standings. The Western Conference, as it has been for years, is vastly superior to the East and this season it has grown to a whole new extreme.
In the West, there are 11 teams over .500 and five teams with a winning percentage of 60% or more. Meanwhile, in the East, only four teams are above .500 while 10 teams have won less than 45% of their games. The Spurs, who are 12th in the West at 8-8 would be ranked 5th in the East, right behind the New York Knicks and Orlando Magic.
The discrepancy between the two conferences has made it much easier for teams in the East to stay competitive while even highly competitive and talented Western squads get left out.
This trend has been happening for years now and the only solution would be to get rid of the two conferences entirely. This would put all teams on an even playing field and ensure that only the best (regardless of location) have a chance to make the playoffs.
Not only would it make the game more competitive all around, but it would bring more meaning to each regular-season game. It’s an unprecedented move for the NBA, but Commissioner Adam Silver has never been slow to adapt and evolve with the modern times.
So if Adam Silver gets the hunch that getting rid of Conferences will help increase the product and drive up the viewership, he will be quick to spring into action and take the necessary steps to make the change.
Between the NBA Cup, the play-in tournament, and the new All-Star game format, the NBA has had many wins when it comes to key format changes. This could be another one of those wins if they play their cards right and listen to fan feedback.
If not, the NBA could consider a number of other changes to address the widening gap in talent between the East and West. But with new expansion teams on the way, it will force many tough conversations around the league on how to best separate these teams and create a balanced system for everyone.
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