The West is getting weaker just as the Spurs are taking over

The Spurs have risen to title contention at the perfect time. A grueling path to the NBA Finals may have slowed them down in the final round last season, but the Eastern Conference's representative should go through something similar for the next few years. The West's counterpart has gotten significantly stronger over the years, and that trend continued this offseason.

The Western Conference has been known as the better of the two for the last couple of decades. Most of the time, it hasn't really been close. That's no longer the case. The East is brimming with talented teams, and looking at the state of San Antonio's conference, more questions surface than answers for the competition outside of the top two projected seeds.

The West is losing the depth that made it so dangerous

Who should the Spurs be concerned about in their backyard outside of Oklahoma City? The Lakers haven't been to a conference finals in over three years, and they just lost LeBron James to Philly. The team that made that 2023 run is not the same one we see before us today. Luka Doncic is an All-NBA player, but that team has serious deficiencies they won't be overcoming as currently constructed.

Once this crazy cap circumvention investigation wraps up, Kawhi Leonard is headed back to Toronto. The Clippers are going with a younger core, but they don't have the star power to make a run anywhere close to the title.

Minnesota traded away Julius Randle and Naz Reid, killing their size advantage over most teams. They did add LaMelo Ball, but it remains to be seen whether that's a positive or a negative. Denver just lost one of their best two-way players in a trade with Cleveland. They got no bodies in return.

These losses aren't all equal, but collectively, they reduce the Western Conference's depth of high-level talent. That benefits San Antonio greatly as they begin their era of dominance.

The West still has dangerous teams but none look ready for the Spurs

There's always an unexpected team or two to rise from the ashes, and my money is on Utah. They have the talent and the depth to stake a claim to a playoff spot. Portland will also be better with Damian Lillard and Ja Morant powering their offense, but they'll lose something defensively when those guys share the floor.

The Rockets added Marcus Smart and Bogdan Bogdanovic. Those are fine additions, but they won't swing the odds of winning a championship. These teams will be better, but they won't be ready.

The Spurs are sitting in a position of power heading into the future. They have stars, depth, and the ability to pivot when they need to because they have assets and haven't overstretched financially. While they get stronger, the rest of the West gets weaker. That's a recipe for success if we've ever seen one.

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