There have been countless instances in the NBA where teams have dominated the regular season, winning over 60 games, only to be under immense pressure once the playoffs begin.
This recurring pattern is exactly why Gilbert Arenas believes regular-season dominance and playoff dominance are two entirely different things, and that is why there are no clear-cut favorites for the 2026 championship.
Moreover, using the Oklahoma City Thunder 's 20205 championship run as an example, Arenas argued that while OKC thrived throughout a six-month regular-season campaign, they struggled in the playoffs. In fact, he went as far as to proclaim that had Shai and Co. faced an experienced and healthy team like the Boston Celtics in the championship round, they would've likely suffered a gentleman sweep.
The Thunder's 2024-25 regular-season performance was nothing short of historic. They finished just two wins shy of attaining the 70-win mark, largely because they dropped two of their last six regular-season games. They weren't just the best defensive team but also the third-best offensive team in the league — a testament to their two-way dominance.
However, their aura of invincibility began to fade once the playoffs began. Not only were they stretched to a tense seven-game series in the second round by the Denver Nuggets , but the NBA Finals tested them to their limits.
At one point, Oklahoma found itself trailing 2-1 against the Indiana Pacers . Eventually, in Game 7, the momentum clearly seemed in favor of the latter franchise until Tyrese Haliburton went down with a tragic injury.
Arenas boldly proclaimed that if the Thunder faced an experienced team like the Celtics, which had a healthy Jayson Tatum and a set core, there would be no chance for the Thunder to win more than one game in such a playoff series.
"Being regular-season 'good' is very different from being playoff 'good,'" Arenas said. "Even when you think about the Thunder. The Thunder kinda struggled in the playoff series; they didn't play well at all. If you played against the Boston Celtics , you can f–k around and say that would've been a 3-1, or 4-1 series (to) Boston."
Interestingly, his argument holds weight when one considers Arenas's comments. When the Pacers held a 2-1 series lead, a team with the Celtics' championship DNA would have seized that opportunity, likely closing out the series before it could reach Game 7.
Instead, the Thunder managed to rally back, outscoring the Pacers 31-17 in the fourth quarter of Game 4, flipping the series' momentum from that point on and ultimately surviving yet another seven-game war. Nevertheless, Arenas's point remains that championship fortune is fragile and cannot be mistaken for consistent dominance.
With the 2025-26 season approaching, the Thunder may enter as defending champions, but their path to repeating is far from certain. Surviving two Game 7s last season might have showcased their resilience, but relying on similar luck is unrealistic.
Thus, different teams will be much more confident in facing them in the postseason, even if they finish as a bottom seed.
Related: Gilbert Arenas thinks the Milwaukee Bucks can reach the ECF: "I wouldn't be surprised"
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Oct 17, 2025, where it first appeared in the Off The Court section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
