Yeah, I agree that going off average iLv can be deceptive. Someone with a lower iLv can be stronger than someone with the same or even a higher iLv, depending on which pieces are i90 and which are i70, for example.

Basing standards off base stats (STR, VIT, etc), while not perfect, would probably have been a better measure of power level, which is all anyone cares about iLv for anyway.