Why East Has Finally Surpassed West as NBA's Superior Conference
For the past decade or so, the NBA's Western Conference has been considered the superior of the two conferences in the NBA.
In the past 13 years, a team from the Western Conference has won the NBA championship 10 times, which includes the Los Angeles Lakers' back-to-back championships and the Dallas Mavericks' most recent dismantling of the Miami Heat.
While it's undeniable that the West has been more dominant than the East over the span of the past decade, the winds of change are undoubtedly coming in the NBA.
The Eastern Conference has slowly but surely overcome the Western Conference as the best conference in the NBA.
At the foundation of this transformation is a legitimate foundation of young talent in the Eastern Conference, and an increased level of talent across the board.
Most importantly though, the shift in power in the NBA is happening because history, more often than not, repeated itself.
It's due time for the Eastern Conference to rise to the top
When you look at the most recent history of power, conference wise in the NBA, it's clear that a shift in the balance is starting to happen.
1986-1998 - Four Western Conference Titles, Nine Eastern Conference Titles
1999-2011 - Ten Western Conference Titles, Three Eastern Conference Titles
Over the past 26 years, the balance of power has shifted in the NBA every 13 years, and that's one of the reasons why things are changing this season.
While history alone can't predict or change anything, there's no doubt that the youth movement is at the foundation of this shift in power from the Western Conference to the Eastern Conference.
The Eastern Conference has more youth than the Western Conference
In the Western Conference there is a discrepancy between teams with youth and teams with veteran talent.
The success of teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder, Los Angeles Clippers, Houston Rockets and Memphis Grizzlies is rooted in the youth that is on their team.
On the other hand, teams like the Los Angeles Lakers, Los Angeles Clippers, Dallas Mavericks and San Antonio Spurs are successful because of the veteran talent they have on their team.
The success in the Eastern Conference is rooted in youth, with teams like the Miami Heat, Philadelphia 76ers, Chicago Bulls, Indiana Pacers and Orlando Magic rising to the top.
The balance of youth that exists in the East is the foundation of why the Western Conference has lost it's stranglehold on the honor of being the most powerful conference in the NBA.
"Dream-Teams" are forming in the Eastern Conference
Teams in the Eastern Conference, like the New York Knicks, Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat and even the Orlando Magic, are slowly but surely forming teams that are centered around the talents of multiple All-Star players.
The Heat have LeBron, Wade and Bosh.
The Knicks have Linsanity, 'Melo and Amare.
The Bulls have Derrick Rose, Luol Deng and Carlos Boozer.
The Magic, next season, could have Dwight Howard and a plethora of talent like Deron Williams, Steve Nash or Eric Gordon.
While there's two dynamic trios in the Western Conference, in the Thunder, who have Kevin Durant, Russell Westbrook and Serge Ibaka, and the Clippers, who have Chris Paul, DeAndre Jordan and Blake Griffin, the rest of the elite teams in the West don't have that kind of talent.
The creation of teams with young All-Stars is the main strength of the Eastern Conference, as it sets the East up for dominance in the years to come.
As the Western Conference gets older, the balance of power in the NBA will shift to the Eastern Conference, and unfortunately for fans of the West, that's already begun.
When a team from the Eastern Conference, say the Bulls or the Heat, wins the 2012 NBA title, it will be evident that the Western Conference's supremacy has come to an end.
