KingsFanSince85
All-Star
I’ve seen some discussion on this forum, and several others, regarding the West not being as good as in the past and the East somehow being better.
My contention has been this all along. The East/West records against each other this season and the West being so tight is the result of massive injuries across the conference not anything to do with the East somehow bridging the gap that’s been present for quite a long time.
The vast majority of the top-tier players are in the West. And already were before KD and Kyrie were traded in recent months.
But before I deep dive into this, let’s be clear. The top 3 teams in the NBA this season might very well all reside in the East. The Bucks, Sixers and Celtics. With Giannis, Middleton, Embiid, Harden, Tatum, and Brown.
However it’s beyond those three teams and those 6 players where the East declines quickly.
The Cavs and Knicks are ok, but in a healthy West, they aren’t top 6 teams IMO. Probably not even top 8.
Out West the following needs to be heavily factored in:
Now, a valid argument can be brought to the table that our KINGS have benefitted from all the above. And they have. But they are still a very good team nonetheless that have just helped to make things even more compacted.
In a fully healthy West, perhaps the KINGS are sitting in 5th or 6th instead of 2nd. Who knows.
My only points are, beyond the top 3 the East isn’t deep and the West is much deeper and better than the records suggest. Prolonged absences to a plethora of upper-tier players have been the prime reason for it. Some of those players are already back and getting better and some will be coming back soon.
My contention has been this all along. The East/West records against each other this season and the West being so tight is the result of massive injuries across the conference not anything to do with the East somehow bridging the gap that’s been present for quite a long time.
The vast majority of the top-tier players are in the West. And already were before KD and Kyrie were traded in recent months.
But before I deep dive into this, let’s be clear. The top 3 teams in the NBA this season might very well all reside in the East. The Bucks, Sixers and Celtics. With Giannis, Middleton, Embiid, Harden, Tatum, and Brown.
However it’s beyond those three teams and those 6 players where the East declines quickly.
The Cavs and Knicks are ok, but in a healthy West, they aren’t top 6 teams IMO. Probably not even top 8.
Out West the following needs to be heavily factored in:
- Steph Curry has missed 26 games and Klay has missed 12 for the Warriors
- LBJ has missed 23 games and AD 27 for the LA LeBrons
- KAT has missed 50 games for Minny
- PHX hasn’t had KD and lost Booker and CP3 for 20+ games each
- Zion has missed 40 games for the Pelicans
- Luka has missed 13 games for Dallas
- Kawhi missed 30 games for the Clips and PG has missed 17 games
- Ja Morant has missed 15 games for the Griz, with Adams, Jackson, and Clarke missing more than that
- SGA has missed 11 games for OKC
Now, a valid argument can be brought to the table that our KINGS have benefitted from all the above. And they have. But they are still a very good team nonetheless that have just helped to make things even more compacted.
In a fully healthy West, perhaps the KINGS are sitting in 5th or 6th instead of 2nd. Who knows.
My only points are, beyond the top 3 the East isn’t deep and the West is much deeper and better than the records suggest. Prolonged absences to a plethora of upper-tier players have been the prime reason for it. Some of those players are already back and getting better and some will be coming back soon.