[SammyKid11]

Western Conference:
1) San Antonio: 21-7
2) LA Clippers: 16-10
3) Minnesota: 13-12
4) Dallas: 21-7

Eastern Conference
1) Detroit: 22-3
2) Miami: 16-12
3) New Jersey: 15-12
4) Cleveland: 17-9

So...because Dallas is in the same division with SA, and Cleveland is in the same division with Detroit...it doesn't MATTER if they end up far and away the second best teams in their respective conferences. They have to open the playoffs with the #5 seed, and play the #1 seed in the second round.

This sets up a situation where the two best teams in both conferences will be squaring off in the SECOND ROUND of the playoffs instead of the Conference Finals, while two of the four paper "division champs" get into the final four...where they'll get their asses waxed by the winner of the 1-4 series.

Does anybody else think this is just stupid? I can understand it somewhat in football and baseball...but with an 8-team-per-conference playoff system, why does basketball even NEED divisions? They only play one more game against division opponents than other conference opponents (and correct me if I'm wrong, but sometimes that's not even the case), and having these meaningless divisions don't do a damn thing but make it harder (and in the West's case it looks like impossible) for the best two teams in the conference to actually meet in the conference finals.

DUM