If Episodes 7, 8, and 9 are good, it won't be because of the original trilogy, or the prequels. Those stories have been told. It won't be because they interweave themselves with the Expanded Universe. It won't even be because they are part of the Star Wars universe itself. It will be because at their core, they are stories worth telling. So really, what the creators and viewers need to ask is "would this story be good if it didn't have Star Wars on the poster?"

For me, there was only one great story worth telling in Star Wars, and that was told 30 years ago. I believe that more great stories can be told in the Star Wars universe, but I doubt that Disney will be the ones to tell them.