The NBA's newfound parity creates a bold new basketball world

The new CBA has given made for an even playing field.

As for bigger market teams, the new CBA has specifically made it hard for them to trade for stars if they are way over the salary cap and several of them are. That may force them to offload key players rather than trade for stars, not to mention that many have already traded away future picks or are unable to do so due to the Stepien rule, effectively forcing them to stick with their roster.

The Clippers may lose Paul George partly due to cost concerns associated with extending him. That would make their team far worse, and they already mortgaged their future by trading five firsts and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to the Oklahoma City Thunder who nearly made it to the Western Conference Finals with him as their best player.

The Warriors are a bit better off but they may have to let franchise legend Klay Thompson leave in free agency and may also have to move on from Andrew Wiggins to allow them to retool around aging star Steph Curry.

All in all, this year's playoffs have shown that the NBA is no longer dominated by a select few teams from big cities. Instead, small or medium-market teams not only have a chance to go far in the postseason but also win it all.