I agree. The fact that all of the US legacies have some flights that run xxx-hub-yyy on the same planes is meaningless insofar as people who would prefer not to deal with connections are concerned. On WN, by contrast, if I book a flight from BUR to PDX, I know that I won't have to get off the plane (at SMF, SJC, RNO, or OAK) unless I choose to do so.