Maybe the East isn't the least

Ok, I’ve previously admitted to having a cluttered mind but I’m no lunatic. Before I start I want to point out that I get it; there will probably be a 50 win team out west that doesn’t get in the playoffs and there will be a couple of East teams with losing records that do make it. Just for the sake of argument, let’s look at a couple of items that at least make a little sense when comparing the two conferences.

Top teams all out west?
To hear the national media tell it, all of the best teams are out west. Makes sense right? If you look at the records of the top 8 teams in the league, are they all from the west? Is at least the team with the best record out west? Second best record? The answer to all of these questions is a resounding no! As of the games from April 1st, (No, this isn’t an April Fool’s Day joke) the Celtics have a 7.5 game lead on the ENTIRE WESTERN CONFERENCE. What about Detroit? They have a 1.5 game lead on the west as well! In fact, if you include Orlando, 3 of the top 8 teams are from the east based on current records. Not exactly an overwhelming statistic for proving the west’s dominance.

What about the bottom feeders?
Here’s the next question: what about the “have-nots”? It’s only logical that the east is haven for all of the cellar-dwellers, no? Again, it’s not like you would think. Who’s the worst team in the league? The records say Miami. Are they alone? No, there are THREE western conference teams with less than 20 wins! Must be a bunch more in the east right? None. In reality, of all the teams with less than 25 wins, 4 out of 6 are from the WEST. Maybe we should start calling it the “worst-ern conference”.

Getting fat off the other half
The west has definitely had its way with the east in inter-conference games right? Overall that is very obvious but there may be a little secret hiding in the stats. Of the top eight teams in the league, Boston and Detroit are there for the most wins against the other conference. (Boston has the most)

Temper it all with reality
Before anyone goes too far with these stats, let’s have a reality check. The western conference is the better conference. It is definitely top heavy whereas the east is heavy in the middle. It’s just interesting to notice that the best of the best are in the east and the worst of the worst are in the west.

Wrapping it all up
Aren’t statistics fun? While you can’t use them to show the eastern conference is superior, they do show some facts that may have escaped my people. With Boston and Detroit in the picture, no one can honestly believe that the NBA Finals will happen during the WCF. In fact, depending on how you shake the numbers, maybe the east isn’t even the “least-ern conference” after all! Ask the Celtics and Pistons fans where the O’Brien trophy will land and they might just tell you in the mighty eastern conference!