I think those two issues are somewhat related: the 'lack' of talent (I'd more call it an uneven distribution of talent) leads to a lack of parity amongst teams,

I think those two issues are somewhat related: the 'lack' of talent (I'd more call it an uneven distribution of talent) leads to a lack of parity amongst teams, and a lack of parity amongst teams leads to a pointless regular season where you have a pretty accurate idea of the playoffs before even the All-Star break.