“OKC is gonna fall because they can’t afford their team because their team is too good and too young,” Arenas said on his podcast Gil’s Arena. “The fact that they’re all playing well, they have to be paid. Somebody has to pay them and OKC can’t afford all of it. This is what happened to OKC the first time.”

As the press conference room was filled to the brim, more reporters populated the space than chairs available. Such a site is usually reserved for the playoffs — not a January regular-season outing. Such comes with the territory of the Oklahoma City Thunder's 134-114 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The Oklahoma City Thunder and the Dallas Mavericks went toe to toe on Friday in the American Airlines Center and once again proved that these two teams have no love lost between them - They are the next great NBA rivalry.