I'll add that maybe NYC could be tougher going forward, but New England is basically uncontested now. Not that Cooley was out recruiting UConn but he was going after and getting some guys like Mulready most recently.
Plus Hurley has been more NJ leaning than NYC in his time here (Sanogo, Cole Samson, Gaffney v. Bouk and Richie). Given his history in that state he should still get the guys he wants.
The league being more competitive should be beneficial as others have said to improve everyone's profile and reduce margin of error for making tourney and help with metrics to ensure OOC schedule is less important and seeding is improved.