I haven't really paid attention, to anything, for quite awhile now. So, I'll admit I was pretty surprised to see this topic until I did a little research;
https://www.nba.com/2015/news/09/08/nba-playoff-seeding-ch...https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/5-things-to-know-nba-di...I'm old. I'm accustomed to the idea of division winners receiving a certain measure of preferential treatment in post-season play; A division winner in the NFL getting a better seeding than a wildcard team with a better record, the same in baseball, etc. I had no idea the NBA had begun shifting away from that format in 2015, but I understand where Ivess is coming from, as well as why the system was set up the way it is currently.