Ron Artest - Why this guy?

So let me get this bit of information out there quickly. I'm not an Xs and Os basketball guy, yes, I know them, but in my mind, "plays" in basketball work about 4 times a game, and usually they are just where did the screen get set or who gets the ball on the inbound and then who cuts where. My point is, this is going to be a little more visceral than tactical. Let's start with the basics, who is Ron Artest?

Ron Artest
Born on November 13, 1979 in Queens, New York

Attended La Salle Academy, more known as the school the Archdiocese of New York and Chicago went to than for basketball

He then went on to attend St. Johns where he took the team to the Elite 8, eventually losing to Ohio State in an incredible 77-74 game.

Nicknames
Crazy Pills - Thank you Hardwood Paroxysm
Tru Warier - Apparently his barber can't spell
Ron Ron - My personal favorite

NBA career

Chicago
Drafted by the Chicago Bulls in the 1999 draft, #15 overall. That draft was one of the better ones in the last 20 years. Though it was almost 10 years ago, it has produced star players of today in Elton Brand, Baron Davis, Richard Hamilton, Shawn Marion, Corey Maggette, and Artest. It also has some other big names in Steve Francis, Lamar Odom, Wally djfdzzzerbiak, Andre Miller, Jason Terry, James Posey and Andrei Kirilenko. Oh, and don't forget that the Spurs picked up Manu Ginobli with the second to last pick that year.

His days with the Bulls first sprouted my love for Ron Artest. He always seemed to be in people's faces and just did everything pretty well. When you can score and pride yourself on your defense, it's almost a lock that I will like you as an NBA player. The Bulls were terrible, but with Elton Brand and Ron Artest I thought they had a shot to really turn the team back around. Sadly, after lucking into Jordan and Pippen, the Bulls personnel moves have left something to be desired. He and his 13 PPG, 4 RPG, 3 APG, 2 SPG and .5 BPG were traded to Indiana along with Brad Miller, Ron Mercer and Kevin Ollie for effectively Jalen Rose and nobodies. That's right, they traded 3 guys still in the league for Jalen Rose.

Indiana
In Indiana he was now on a team with Jermaine O'Neal, Reggie Miller, and Al Harrington. Enough has been written about the Malice in the Palace, so I'm just going to get my quick two cents in and leave it alone. Throwing a cup of beer at someone means you get punched. That's just the way it is. It also was 90% Ben Wallace's fault, there, I said it. Prior to the "brawl" he was around 17PPG, 5RPG, 3APG, 2+SPG, and .7BPG and was the second best player on the team. It's really a shame that the fight happened, as he was producing some incredible number in the first 7 games that year, 24PPG, 6.5RPG, 2SPG and 1BPG. After the fight it was obvious that something needed to change in Indiana, and though they were expected to contend for the title the year of the fight, they couldn't let the team stand as it was. Well, they couldn't after Artest demanded a trade anyway. Artest was traded to Sacramento for Peja Stojakovic.

Sacramento Kings
When Artest arrived in Sacramento, the team hit the ground running. He was a perfect fit for Rick Adelman's offense and more importantly, his team's previous lack of defense. The Kings were 18-24 when he arrived and finished the season 26-14 to clinch the 8th playoff spot. They played the Spur tough, but ultimately they were too much. The next season Adelman was fired and the Kings went through a tough season. Ron upped his averages across the board, but it wasn't enough, the Kings injuries left them out of firepower. Artest had a good year last year as well, again upping his averages. He has pretty consistently improved ever year he has been in the league, and with each team he's been with, his averages in his last year were better than his averages in his first year with them.

Houston Rockets
On August 14th, we should find out that this trade has gone through, after that, a new chapter in Artest's career will be born.

Why is he a fit?

Okay, tell me that this guy isn't a fit?

Let's pretend for a second that you didn't know about Artest's past. Let's pretend all you were doing is building an NBA team. You have 2 legitimate superstars and 2 good to very good players behind them. Would you want a guy that is 28 and has these numbers?

Career

PPG - 16, 18 over his last 3

RPG - 5.1, 6 over his last 3

STL - 2.1, 2.2 over his last 3

AST - 3.2, 4.2 in his one season with Adelman

BPG - .7

FG% - .425, .431 over the last 3 including .453 from behind the arc last year and .440 the year before that

The answer to the above question is "Of course you would".

What position can he play? Is all of them good enough for you? Okay, so he can't play C, but you can legitimately see him playing every other spot on the court. And save for PG, he has. He is a natural SG/SF with incredible post up skills and strength that allow him to play PF as well. Now, lets go back a while, what were the Rockets biggest needs?

1. A SG/SF that can spell Tmac and provide offense at the SF position. Someone that is versatile enough to come off the bench or start.

2. A top 10-12 PG

3. A backup center to Yao that can learn from him at a young age.

So, if you are scoring at home, Daryl Morey just fixed the Rockets NUMBER ONE PROBLEM! That's right, he fixed the biggest gaping hole we had. And you know what? It also partially fixed number 2, because Rafer's deficiencies are masked greatly with a third scorer. It means he won't have to, nor will he have the chance to try to, take over a game on the offensive end. Morey actually went above and beyond the number one need because he got a guy that can not only spell TMac, he can actually take over Shane's starting spot. Now I think everyone that is reading this knows how much I truly like Shane Battier. He brings everything he has to the game every single time. Unfortunately high potency offense is not something he has.

Where does he play? How does he fit on the court?

So if he can play SG/SF/PF consistently well, what will he play? The beauty of it is, anything Adelman feels in a given night can be the answer. John Hollinger says that the Rockets want to play him at PF, I say that's not going to happen that often. Definetly not often enough to point it out as your biggest scoop. (I really like Hollinger, so no knocks, he had what he had to write). Here's the most logical starting lineup:

PG Rafer

SG TMac

SF Crazy Pills

PF Scola

C The Great Wall

Seriously, who has a better starting 5 than that?

Let's see (And I'm not sure if I'm being a homer or not here):

AR - Advantage Rockets

AO - Advantage Other Team

E - Even

AR+ or AO+ means big advantage

Pacific - Absolute Nos - Warriors, Clippers, Kings

Lakers - PG Farmar (AR), SG Kobe (AO), SF Odom (AR), PF Gasol (AO), C Bynum (AR+)

This may prove to be the closest out there. Rockets have 3 advantage points in my eyes and two for the Lakers. Farmar just isn't that good, but he's young and definitely has potential. Kobe is Kobe, without Artest on the Rockets, I call that big advantage Lakers, but I'm giving TMac the benefit of the doubt here. Artest is better than Odom, plain and simple. As for Gasol, I'm not a huge fan, and his numbers, while better than Scola across the board, weren't that much better once Scola started. Over the last month, Scola was a 14 and 9 guy and Gasol was a 19 and 7 guy. It's a difference to be sure, but certainly not a huge one. And let me remind you that this was Scola's first season in the US. Yao is much better than Bynum pre injury and he's infinitely better post. Overall I'd call the teams pretty even right now, with a slight edge to the Lakers for going to the finals last year and now getting Bynum back. This starting lineup vs the Rockets is a toss-up to me, not clearly better, not clearly worse.

Suns - PG Nash(AO+++), SG Bell(AR+), SF Grant Hill (AR+), PF Stoudemire (AO+), C Shaq (AR+)
On the surface, this looks like it should be closer than I really think it is. Nash is now 34 and due for a back break down, but he's infinitely better than Alston. Bell and the 35 year old Hill aren't even close to Tracy and Artest, they just can't do anything with that. Bell's defensive skills aren't enough to handle both players and one will surely go off on the offensive end. Stoudemire is a big advantage, especially on the offensive end. He's the one place no other team in the league other than Boston can truly counter. Luckily, he goes into offensive and defensive lapses a lot, though I do think this is the year that stops. I still believe the Shaq trade was terrible, he's become a charicature of himself off the court and a shell of his former self on the court. It happens to every great center (except Abdul Jabbar somehow) eventually. At this point in time, hell for the last three years, Yao has been head and shoulders better in every way except offensive fouling and not getting called for it. In the end, the analysis says that the Suns would be competitive with the Rockets, but the Rockets should win any series they are involved with Phoenix in.

Northwest - Absolute Nos - Nuggets, Timberwolves, OKCDurants

Trailblazers - PG Jerryd Bayless (AR), SG Brandon Roy (AR getting slimmer though), SF Outlaw/Webster (AR), PF Aldridge (E to AO, not sure here (Go Horns!)), C Oden (AR+)

Here is a team that I legitametly like. They are extremely young at every postition and have a new PG and a new C on a team that threatened to make the playoffs for 2/3rds of the year. They will go through their growing pains, but I fully expect them to take over for the Nuggets as the last or second to last team in the playoffs this year. Bayless will take some seasoning and Oden is coming off microfracture surgery, but by mid season I think this team will be over .500 and really getting on a decent roll. Overall I won't breakdown each spot, the Rockets are just the better team, but in two years, if they can keep the team together, the Trailblazers and the Hornets (same team issue for them contract wise) will be the best two teams in basketball. This year though, the Rockets have the advantage.

Jazz - PG Williams (AO+), SG Brewer (AR+), SF Kirilenko (AR+), PF Boozer (AO), C Okur (AR+)

I have chronicled many times how much I hate the Jazz. They have beaten the Rockets the last two years in the playoffs, once without Yao, and both without Artest. Mark it down, there is not a chance in the world that this team is better than a healthy Rockets team, none. There is no one that convince me that if Yao had played that the Jazz would have won the series last year, add in Artest and it's over Jazz fans! I'm talking to you MyUtahJazz and SLCDunk! Luckily for you, the Jazz will be a 4th or 5th seed again, so they won't have to face the Rockets.

The East

Absolute Nos -Philly without Iguodala and Miller, Atlanta, Indiana, New Jersey, Chicago, Charlotte, Milwaukee, New York, Miami

Just nos but could be competitive - Orlando, Cleveland, Washington, Toronto, Philly with Miller and Iguodala

Celtics - Yep, they are good, but they are in the East so I'm not sure I care that much.

Pistons - Old, beatdown, not going to do it this year either. They will blow this team up either this year or next

The Rockets own division - The Southwest Absolute No - Grizzlies

Spurs - PG Parker (AO), SG Ginobli (AR because Ginobli really comes off the bench), SF Bowen (AR+), PF Duncan (AO+), C Oberto (AR+)

This is a tough one to break down, as I truly believe the Spurs may be close to done. Not getting Corey Magette may have made them finally too old. They have two clear advantages at PG and at PF, but Duncan is not who he used to be. He can still turn it on, but much like McGrady can dissapear at times. No one notices it, because Duncan gets props even when playing poorly. Ginobli isn't better than Tracy, but the advantage is not huge in the Rockets favor, but it is an advantage nonetheless. Bowen isn't better than Artest by a long shot, he's not even better than Battier. Oberto is not in Yao's league. Overall, the power has swung away from the Spurs in the Southwest, the Rockets and Hornets both will be better this season. They've had a great run, and could just be one medium trade from being back in it, but for now, they are a solid 3, mabye 4 in the Southwest.

Mavericks - PG Kidd (AO), SG Terry (AR+), SF Howard (E), PF Nowitzki (AO+), C Dampier (AR+++++++++)

After trading Devin Harris, this starting 5 got old in a hurry. Kidd is on his last leg, though his last leg is better than a lot of players' first leg. Terry just doesn't have what he used to, and coming off the bench again may be what is best for him. Howard is very good, he's basically Artest's offensive game without all of his defense. I called it even, but the more I think about it, the more that's probably an advantage for the Rockets. Obviously Dirktastic is a great player he's a standout in this lineup versus the Rockets, and I think he'll have another strong year. Dampier sucks, he's not the best and in the West you could make a case for him being in the bottom 5 starting centers. Yao is kind of good on the other hand. They have another year to gel with Kidd, but I can't see them rising above the number 3 spot in the Southwest. The Rockets and Hornets have clearly better teams right now.

Hornets - PG Paul (AO+++), SG Peterson (AR++) SF Stojakovic (AR), PF West (AO), C Chandler (AR)

That brings me to my pick to make the finals last year, and the team I think stands in the way of the Rockets to make it there more than any other. Paul is the best PG in the league. I honestly think he's the best since Nash, and before Nash since Magic. I think he's better than Nash now, and will be much better when it is all said and done. Rafer can talk shit, but he can't back it up in this matchup. Peterson is a semi-weak link for them, and at a postion they can't afford to have a weak link. Stojakovic is going to get abused if they play him against Tracy or against Ron Ron. Artest can also completely shut him down on defense and let Tracy get the points in this matchup. West is clearly better than Scola, and that's no knock on Luis. West was arguably the best true PF in the West last year. Chandler is good, but he won't be alley-ooping nearly as much when Yao plays under the basket against him. This lineup vs the Rockets is a toss-up to me, not clearly better, not clearly worse.

Okay, I'm done, that took me forever to type. On to a few links:

Sacbee - Kings Blog

This blog gave us soundbites from Artest before Yao spoke and after. Either way, he's happy to come to the Rockets as long as he is wanted. Ron Ron, you are wanted man.

Right after the trade

Q&A with Artest after Yao Spoke

After Artest talked on the phone to Yao -In other words, no big deal. He wants to be a Rocket and knows whos team this is.

Houston Chronicle

Yao right after the trade - My take on this is that Yao is a million miles away and was just wondering outloud about chemistry. He didn't say he didn't like Artest or that he didn't want him. Yao is a smart man, he just wants to make sure the team will work. I believe he thinks chemistry with anyone is possible, just wants it to be known that it is needed here. After reading it all a second time, Yao actually seems to be excited. Let's not forget that English is his second langauge.

And for the final piece of why Artest; From Yao:

“For some reason, I like (Artest),” Yao said. “Because in the games we play
against him, I hate him.

Liking a player because you hate them on the court is a supreme compliment

Richard Justice, man, I want to like you, you're a Horn afterall, but come on, don't make a big bullshit statement saying you hate the trade and then the next day say it makes complete sense. Seriously, where is your credibility? If you are going to do that, at least say you thought about it and were wrong. It's okay to be wrong occasionally if you are willing to admit it.

Sactown Royalty - Just check out the whole place, Ziller and his group are the class of bloggers

Yao Back, Summer League and Other Notes

Yao Ming, Yao Ming, Yao Ming Yao Ming
Yesterday Yao Ming took part in a warm up game for the Olympics with his native Chinese National Team. He put up 11 points in 12 minutes and looked rusty by all accounts that aren't full of crap. AP on ESPN article here I have no idea if Yao is rushing back at all, but it seems to fall in line with what most thought, he'd be out until July or August, and here we are right in the middle. My hope is that he doesn't play any more in the warm ups, but I highly doubt I get my wish. And since that is the case, I'll just amend it to say that I hope he plays less than 15 minutes in any non-Olympic game before the NBA season starts. Yao and Lebron also have a pretty cool new Coke commerical out (h/t on the video to Clutchfans)

Summer League Game 2 Action
Unfortunately I did not get to see last nights game, because, well... as much as I love the Rockets, I can only watch so many Summer League games. They are BRUTAL in a lot of ways to watch. I can read a box score though.

1. Greene Machine
Donte Greene had his inevitable fall back to earth. He shot 4-17 (3-8 from behind the arc, so 1-9 inside it) and scored 17 points. I know we've been watching Tracy McGrady for a long time, so we all know that this was not a good 17 points. Greene also went from 0 turnovers in game one to 4 in game two. He did go 6-6 from the line though, so that is nice.

2. The Midget
Great to have a better game from Aaron Brooks. He shot way too many times and not so well at that, but he had 7 assists and only 2 turnovers. MUCH better than Monday's debacle of a game for him. Brooks even cut down on on his fouls from 9 all the way down to 3!

3. The Guy I'm in No Way Thrilled with
Joey Dorsey made his debut last night. I have no idea why I didn't realize the issue on Monday is that he didn't have a contract. Dorsey is still without one, but the Rockets have insurance in place in case he gets hurt so he will play the rest of the Summer League. He went 4-4 from the field, but paired that with a cute 0-6 from the line. He had 14 rebounds, but they were almost all nullified by his 6 fouls and 6 turnovers. I want to like this guy, but he was a lazy bastard in college, played for a coach I think is sleazy and I just genuinely didn't like him before he was a Rocket. But Joey, I tell you what, I'm going to put all your stripper loving, lazy stuff behind us. From now until you screw up, and hopefully you never do, I'm going to try and like you.

4. My parents loved the letter A Leunen
Like I said, I didn't get to watch the game, but it sure seems like Maaaaarty is better than I was hoping for. 17 points on 5-9 shooting (3-5 3s and 4-5 FT) and 5 rebounds for him. I don't think there is any room on the roster for him, but maybe later in the season, or even next season we'll see how he make the NBA transition

Stephen A Smith
F you. Actually, F you and anyone that employs your pathetic excuse for an NBA reporter existence. First of all, screaming something louder makes it seem more wrong, not all of the sudden un-idiotic. Second, Tracy telling you he just wants to win does NOT mean "I want to be traded". It means, I want to win. You cannot extrapolate out that now he'd "Welcome a trade to Detroit". All you can take out of that is that he wants to win, period. And guess what fuckstick, he IS winning in Houston. 55 times just last year alone, even 22 in a row. Yes, they lost in the first round, but no Yao had at least a little effect on that, don't you think? In short, you are the worst NBA reporter with any sort of exposure that I've ever seen, please stop talking completely. Actually, stop talking, writing, typing or even using sign language.

Luther Head
Yes, I saw that Head was selected to the USA Select Team, no I do not think he deserved it. Here is my hope: Luther plays phenomenally, moves without the ball and shoots lights out. This in turn ups his value to a stupid GM, somewhere that has a low 2nd round pick up for grabs and the rights to someone they can't sign even. Then we trade him and get him off of the Rockets. Personally like him as just a guy, but not as a basketball player on my team. It's all business

Greene drops 40 in Summer League Action

One day after agreeing to his slotted contract offer, Donte Greene showed his range last night shooting 5-10 from behind the arc, and 7-10 inside it. Put that with 11-12 free throw shooting and it adds for 40 points. He also had 3 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals and 0 turnovers. That's right, the guy shot 20 times and didn't commit a single turnover. Now, I know what you're thinking, "It's the Summer League, no one plays defense", and partially you are correct. The problem with that assertion is that in the Summer League, these guys aren't exactly polished yet, so turnovers are inevitable, even if it's one bad pass, or a good pass where the other guy didn't make his spot in time. The rest of the team shot 47 times and turned it over 13 times, Greene went 20 and 0. His 3rd assist of the night to Leunen put the Rockets on top for the first time all night, 98-97 and Houston went on to win 100-97.

(h/t to Clutchfans for the video)

Other notables from the night:
Maaaaaaarty Leunen had 16 points and EIGHT fouls
Mike Harris was a beast scoring 21 and boarding 13, to go with his 6 fouls. I thought there was no way he'd be making the team this year when he came on a the end of last year. Now I'm not so sure about that.
Joey Dorsey was a DNP last night

Little known fact: (h/t Clutchfans)
Since 2004 the Rockets are now 20-1 in Summer League play

My shout out to our Aggie readers:
Your boy Joe Jones was the antithesis of good last night. He shot 0 times and rebounded the ball once. He did somehow manage 5 fouls in his 11:44 on the court. Or for the mathematically challenged 1 every 2.34 minutes or so. I still think he has potential in the NBA though, everyone has a tough night.

The worst stat of the night:
Aaron Brooks posted 9, that's right 9, fouls. I'm guessing he's in a cold bath still after the beating he delivered and I'm sure he received. Brooks did not have a good game, shooting 4-14 and had a 4-6 Assist to TO ratio.

One Released, One Signed on, Minor Trade coming?
Loren Woods was released from his contract after requesting to be yesterday. Morey said that he appeared to have a big deal to play overseas and he didn't want to hold him back. They quickly signed Chris Daniels out of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. He was the Southland player of the year and went undrafted. Morey also stated that a minor trade would happen within the month. I think he's getting rid of Novak, Head or Hayes, maybe more than one of them.

My personal pet peeve of the Summer League: Get these guys some jerseys that are better than the local YMCA kids league. If you are on the Rockets Summer League team, you deserve a Rockets jersey.

Another reason I love the NBA:
Slotted cost for a first round pick. This rules on every level. No hassles, no ridiculous singing bonuses, and a guarantee that you get a guy for 3 years.

Ron Artest:
Yes please! If you don't like Artest as a player, then you know less than you think about basketball.

Links:
Clutch written recap at Clutchfans
NBA.com writeup
Box score
Rockets Summer League page at NBA.com

I guess I missed this(Nike - Hyperdunkrecoverycenter), but isn't this a little cold after the McGrady dunking over James Felton article recently?
And if you haven't seen the article, it is a must read.

Some offseason fun

A few links from some friends of the blog

First up: TMac saving a dude that's falling

From Carolyn over at blog Cleveland: Yao's flippin sweet new kicks
I actually really want these, though a 6'3 bald headed white guy wearing these might not work out as well as I think it would in my head. In my head I rock them and I have to beat ladies off with a stick. In real life I'd be a guy with a dragon on his shoe and get looked at funny.

In other news:

Dave and I are participating in Ridiculous Upside's NBA Mock Draft currently. We pick for the Rockets tomorrow at 8AM. As I write this the following players have been picked:

The 2008 SB Nation Mock Draft so far:
1. Chicago Bulls- Blog-A-Bull: Derrick Rose
2. Miami Heat- Peninsula is Mightier: Michael Beasley
3. Minnesota Timberwolves- Canis Hoopus: OJ Mayo
4. Seattle Supersonics- Ridiculous Upside: Eric Gordon
5. Memphis Grizzlies- 3 Shades of Blue: Kevin Love
6. New York Knicks- Posting and Toasting: Russell Westbrook
7. Los Angeles Clippers- Clips Nation: Jerryd Bayless
8. Milwaukee Bucks- BrewHoop: Anthony Randolph
9. Charlotte Bobcats- Queen City Hoops: Joe Alexander
10. New Jersey Nets-Nets Daily: Brook Lopez
11. Indiana Pacers-Indy Cornrows: DJ Augustin
12. Sacramento Kings- Sactown Royalty: Marreese Speights
13. Portland Trailblazers-Blazers Edge: Brandon Rush
14. Golden State Warriors- Golden State of Mind: DeAndre Jordan
15. Phoenix Suns- Bright Side of the Sun: Danilo Gallinari
16. Philadelphia 76ers- Ridiculous Upside: Darrell Arthur
17. Toronto Raptors- The Dinosty: Chris Douglas Roberts
18. Washington Wizards- Bullets Forever: Roy Hibbert
19. Cleveland Cavaliers- Waiting For Next Year: Courtney Lee

So, no Rush, no Hibbert, no CDR, no Courtney Lee, and obviously no Augustin (anyone that doesn't think he is clutch isn't paying attention). So, we are kind of stuck with a project/backup center. I think we need a backup center, but if the draft were to really play out like this (it won't) I'm pretty certain we will be trading the pick.

What say you, who would you pick?

Robin Lopez is still there, he has skills, and his biggest deficiency is FT shooting to me, luckily Yao can teach him that
Donte Green is still left and he could be the next Robert Horry, 6’10, plays SF, but he would need to work on his 3pt shot a LOT, he could be an absolute steal this late
Mario Chalmers is a decent college PG, but I’m not sure we will draft a PG, but overall I hate his assist numbers and his A/T ratio even more. I'll pretty much tell you right now we won't be picking him
JaVale McGee I don’t know enough about

And if we have to take one of the Frenchys I'm going to be pissed.

The NBA will fine Floppers next year (This means you Utah)

According to an ESPN article by Marc Stein, the NBA will fine players for flopping next year. Fine amounts are not set yet, but NBA observers and video reviewers will be tasked with reporting blatant violations. This is fantastic news and something that Dave and I have been pulling for since long before this blog started.

I really like Rasheed Wallace's take on the ridiculousness that is the Celtics flopping in this series:

"All that bull(bleep)-ass calls they had out there. With Mike [Callahan] and
Kenny [Mauer] -- you've all seen that (bleep)," Wallace said. "You saw them
calls. The cats are flopping all over the floor and they're calling that
(bleep). That (bleep) ain't basketball out there. It's all (bleeping)
entertainment. You all should know that (bleep). It's all (bleeping)
entertainment."

I do have to take the potential fining with a grain of salt though. It's Stu Jackson and David Stern running who gets fined ultimately, and much like the way they manipulate officials, this will be manipulated as well.

Another portion of the article talked about possible changes to the playoffs. I'm a huge proponent of letting it be the top 16 teams that get into the playoffs instead of 8 teams in each league. And I wholeheartedly disagree with this being a reason not to do it:

There is also naturally considerable opposition from teams in the East to
sending the clubs with the 16 best records to the playoffs. The current format
enabled several sub-.500 teams this season -- such as Indiana, New Jersey and
Chicago -- to stay in playoff contention well into April, giving them something
to sell to their fan bases in spite of sub-par records and constant reminders
from the media about the West's superior depth.

That is essentially ignoring the fact that there were multiple teams in the West that did not enjoy such a luxury, specifically the Portland Trailblazers and the Sacramento teams. Both of those teams had legitimate arguments that they were better than the Hawks, Wizards, Raptors or 76ers. I don't buy that argument at all, there is a give and take on it that is equal on either side, so in no way is it better to leave it the same just because some crappy teams in the east got a shot at the playoffs that they did not earn.