Should the NBA be careful what it wishes for?

The NBA is dealing with a level of parity it has not experienced since the 1970s, but is it actually good for the league?

This will be the first six-year stretch with six different NBA champions since 1974-1980. In fact, a defending champion hasn't even made it back to the conference finals the following season since the Golden State Warriors in 2019.

That is exactly what the NBA desires. The league made changes to the CBA, making it more difficult to build the super teams we became accustomed to in the NBA.

But is the league cutting off its nose to spite its face?

Sports fans yearn for parity and a variety of champions, and yet, "Fast X", the 10th film of the "Fast and Furious" franchise, still earned over $700M at the box office last year. "Saw X" and "Scream VI" were also popular movies last year.

We love what is familiar. It's human nature to be creatures of habit and routine oriented. Which is why sports leagues do well during dynastic runs.

Repeat champions are familiar storylines.

Even teams constantly getting close to reaching the finals, like the Knicks of the 1990s, become storylines to track season after season. It's also how rivalries are built.

The 1970s marked the low point of the NBA, but it was then buoyed by Larry Bird's Celtics and Magic Johnson's Lakers hogging nearly every championship of the 1980s. ... Which also created the first big rivalry of the sport.

The NBA then exploded when Michael Jordan won the championship in every full season he played in the 1990s.

Were fans really tired of the success achieved by Golden State Warriors and LeBron James? Because the ratings said otherwise. But now that the NBA is going through a run of unique champions the last five years, the ratings have decreased.

Over 16 million people watched each game of the 2018 finals, when the Warriors swept James' Cleveland Cavaliers. An NBA Finals game hasn't drawn 14 million viewers since.

The NFL has surpassed all other North American sports leagues on the backs of the Dallas Cowboys dynasty and the Patriots dynastic run. Now the league is more popular than ever, despite the Kansas City Chiefs' dominance. 

Meanwhile, MLB has gone in the opposite direction since its last dynasty, a New York Yankees run that essentially ended with the 2001 World Series. That World Series averaged 24.3 million viewers, compared to 9.1 million a year ago. 

Everyone roots for upsets in the opening weekend of March Madness, and then checks out when it's George Mason in the Elite Eight instead of Duke.

It may just be human nature to want something different, but sports fans have shown up time and time again to watch powerhouse teams.

The last time the NBA had this much parity, it was in financial trouble. That's not to suggest that will happen this time around. But a different champion each season is not as interesting as the Bulls or Warriors dynasties. Or rooting against LeBron James. 

Sports leagues, especially the NBA, thrive on familiarity.