Well normal and HC raids aren’t that difficult usually, I can’t comment on the current state since I am in the process of gearing up to start raiding.
But in Legion I raided Emerald Nightmare, normal and HC, and it wasn’t really that difficult once people knew what to do and had decent gear. The real challenge was Mythic raiding. And this is what normal and HC is for, gearing up for the real challenge. Also you get transmogs from raids too. So you get practice for Mythic and transmogs.
I think it’s fine that you get good gear from M+, because I for one is trying to get good gear for Arena, and if I can get it without having to commit to raiding, then that is awesome, that means I can catch up to other players. Of course, there are some things in raids I would need to get a good combination.
I haven’t gotten higher than M+ 6 yet, and it’s a challenge progression, where I need to get gear upgrades and I get them incrementally, and I need to polish my tactics, and then I deserve the spot for higher M+, and I will be rewarded for that.
That doesn’t mean I enjoy M+, I think it’s pretty boring and it’s sometimes a living hell finding a tank. But we need a place to get good gear without doing raids. I think that the best gear in the game should come from Mythic raids only of course.