The last time that the league's three best teams in regard to per-game point differential were all in the Eastern Conference was the 1983-84 season. The top of the East is strong, with the Indiana Pacers and Philadelphia 76ers joining the Milwaukee Bucks, Toronto Raptors and Boston Celtics in the top eight in point differential.

The Western Conference remains ridiculously deep, with the 14th-place Minnesota Timberwolves only three games below .500. We could eventually have six teams in the West that will miss the playoffs with a better record than the No. 7 and 8 seeds in the East.

If things are going to eventually get sorted out in the West, performance on the road could be what does it. Only three teams in the West's top 14 -- Denver, Golden State and Sacramento -- have winning records on the road. The ninth-place Mavericks are 2-10 on the road, and the 10th-place Spurs (4-10) and 12th-place Pelicans (4-11) haven't been much better. The Minnesota Timberwolves are 2-12, having just returned from an 0-4 trip.

There is still plenty of season left, and in Week 10, there will be 21 games played between the top 14 teams in the West. Every game counts.