It's been seen throughout the past several seasons that the Western Conference is a lot more competitive and tougher than the Eastern Conference. A team with a 44-38 record could miss the playoffs in West, while the same record could claim the fourth or fifth seed in the East.
The Dallas Mavericks went 49-33 last season, good enough for eighth in the West. If they were in the East, they would have been the third seed in the East, and likely would have given the Miami Heat a run for their money in their playoff run.
Right now, Dallas sits at 11-5 on the year, ranking sixth in the West. But guess what? They'd be the second seed in the Eastern Conference, right behind the 13-2 Toronto Raptors.
Yep, that's how weak the East is, and Mavs owner Mark Cuban suggests the NBA should consider a realignment with the conferences. Based off his plan, eight teams would make switches to different conferences.
From ESPN:
In Cuban's plan, the Mavs, San Antonio Spurs, Houston Rockets and New Orleans Pelicans would move to the Eastern Conference. The Chicago Bulls, Indiana Pacers, Detroit Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks would move to the West.
"It's not like it'd be the first time we've ever realigned," Cuban said. "It's happened many times before, so there's precedent and I just think it shakes things up and makes things interesting."
It's an interesting assessment. While Cuban does agree it helps Mavericks fare a little better for the postseason, he does honestly think it will help the league in a whole.
"It's not like you're reducing competition. You keep Cleveland, Washington and other good teams in the East. It kind of shakes things up in terms of not just interest but also in terms of how people rebuild.
The league has considered making changes to the playoff structure. Adam Silver has talked about in the past about a 16-team playoff bracket that doesn't consider conferences.
Cuban has yet to discuss this matter with the commissioner, though.
"I did the trial close right here," Cuban said. "Then it'll turn into headline porn and then we'll see the response."
