Parity \ˈper-ə-tē\ — the quality or state of being equal or equivalent.
Parity is what most professional sports leagues strive for. Parity, or competitive balance in the case of sports, is good for business. It means games are competitive. It gives fans—of all teams—hope and reason to fill arena seats.
Unfortunately for the National Basketball Association, parity seems non-existent nearly 20 games into the 2013-14 season.
Former Boston Celtics forward Antoine Walker took notice of the disparity between the NBA conferences.
Can’t believe the celtics are in first place with a record of 8-12 .. #wow
— Antoine Walker (@WalkerAntoine8) December 4, 2013
There are only three winning teams in the eastern conference …
— Antoine Walker (@WalkerAntoine8) December 4, 2013
To correct Walker, as of today, there are actually only two teams in the Eastern Conference with winning records.
The Indiana Pacers, who have the best record in the NBA, sit atop the East at 17-2. The two-time defending champion Miami Heat are behind them at 14-4.
In third, the Washington Wizards sit five games back with a .500 record at 9-9. The Atlanta Hawks are the only other team rocking a .500 record at 10-10.
As Walker noted, the Boston Celtics lead the Atlantic Division with an 8-12 record. As you’ll recall, both New York-based NBA franchises—the Brooklyn Nets and NY Knicks—that began the season with championship aspirations, sit at the bottom of the division and are in the bottom three in the conference.
The Nets are 5-13 and the Knicks are 3-15.
It’s still too early to completely discount them, but they both seem to have fallen apart.
Meanwhile, as far as parity (or disparity) between the conferences goes, the third best team in the East is only good enough to be tied for 11th in the Western Conference.
It seems that, while the East may boast two of the top contenders for the Larry O’Brien trophy, the power is still soundly in the West.
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