Also both Boston and Toronto are kind of tenuous. Good chance that they lose significant players (Leoard, Irving) and some key guys for them are kind of old, too (Horford, Gasol).

Also the rest of the conference is better in the West than in the East. Teams like the Nets and Magic would not make the playoffs in the West.

The East is stronger now but we've seen other moments where it kind of surged (Boston, Cleveland, Orlando and Detroit being formidable in the late 00s) and it didn't last. Overall the West is still stronger and has more teams that are clearly on the way up (Denver) and potentially so (Dallas). The maybe-they-have-something teams are in both conferences, I guess, but that's usually the case.

And you will know MY JACKET IS GOLD when I lay my vengeance upon thee.