I think these are somewhat good ideas. However, remember that the dominance of a conference goes in waves. There was a time that the Eastern conference was dominant. There have been many times that it was better to have East vs. West - see the LA vs. Boston Finals. No need to do anything drastic because currently the strength is in the West.

I don't think teams would even want to compete for that last playoff spot. It's not like the NCAA tourney where everyone has a chance at a big upset. You're probably not going to the upset the top team in a series. And there's no cinderella story in the NBA either.

I do agree with 5 game first round series. At least you have the chance for a 7 or 8 to upset a 1 or 2 seed there. And it doesn't drag out nearly as long.