The Best Current Sports Rivalries You Might Not Know About

Ohio State-Michigan, North Carolina-Duke, Red Sox-Yankees and Brady-Manning. These are all examples of current sports rivalries that every single sports fan knows about, talks about and, more than likely, watches.

While the aforementioned rivalries are awesome, it can get a little stale as a fan to hear about the same ones over and over, almost leaving us bitter when they get played because they're hyped up so frequently.

For that reason, I figured I'd take a stab at the best current sports rivalries that you may not know about, giving some love to those matchups that should have all of our attention—because they're pretty damn good.

Miami Heat-Cleveland Cavaliers

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Off the floor, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade are the best of friends, giving one another dap and respect that reminds people of the legendary Magic Johnson-Larry Bird rivalry from the '80s. But don't be fooled, they're two of the fiercest competitors in the league, too.

After playing in four straight NBA Finals together as members of the Miami Heat, when James returned to Cleveland prior to the 2014 season, this rivalry became one that's more than just No. 23 and No. 3, as each city's fans are fully engaged.

The Cavs are searching for the same success that the Heat had with this duo together, while Heat fans are quick to taunt LeBron now that he left them at the peak of their success.

With room to grow as both teams develop chemistry and get healthy, the Heat-Cavs rivalry has potential to be the best in the Eastern Conference for a few more years—with loads of storylines.

New York Mets-Chicago Cubs

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While the Chicago Cubs and New York Mets have been around for a long time, this rivalry really got into full gear in 1969 when that whole black cat incident happened to the Cubbies in the old Shea Stadium—a string of bad luck moments for the franchise.

Nowadays, though, these two teams have something that could be the makings of some epic battles in the near future, with both clubs boasting young talent and already facing one another in last season's NLCS—with the Mets winning in Wrigley Field at the Cubs' home park.

More than just the teams, though, the cities of Chicago and New York are always competing, too, with a deep-rooted battle that goes back decades.

With neither one of these teams winning a World Series in almost 30 years—which the Mets accomplished in 1986—they'll be two of the favorites in 2016, with potential to be the new "it" games to watch.

Ole Miss Rebels-Alabama Crimson Tide

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The Alabama Crimson Tide football program is, arguably, the most consistently dominant in all the land, but that doesn't mean that it doesn't have a few thorns in its side.

One of the biggest thorns happens to be the Ole Miss Rebels, who, in the past two seasons, have beaten the Tide twice to remind people that head coach Nick Saban's crew isn't flawless.

Ole Miss, which has great tradition but isn't at the level of the Tide yet, has improved mightily under head coach Hugh Freeze, becoming a program that is on the rise and is hopeful to continue its impressive run towards the top of the SEC West.

One thing's for sure, when these two meet each year, it's a fierce rivalry that's becoming one of the best in the game.

Jameis Winston-Marcus Mariota

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Not only are Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota two of the best young quarterbacks in the league and the faces of their respective franchises, but they've also got a budding rivalry that's going to hopefully continue to develop over time.

Taken No. 1 and No. 2 in the 2015 NFL draft, both have won Heisman Trophies in college, played in a national title game and squared off against the other two times in under a year—once in college and another in the NFL.

Both talented as could be and competing against each other for this year's NFL top rookie honors, Winston-Mariota is a rivalry that could become great should they both live up to the hype.

Holly Holm-Ronda Rousey

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Sure, these two UFC women's fighters have only met the one time, but, with all due respect, the result was one of the most shocking upsets ever, as Holly Holm roundhouse kicked former undefeated champ Ronda Rousey to the ground in an epic knockout.

With word that the two are set for a rematch—something that will be hyped up as much as any UFC fight ever—fans should be excited to see what an encore has in store.

Rousey has already hinted that the fight may be her last ever, which would be a shocking storyline leading up to the fight between the newest rivals in the sport.

Seattle Seahawks-Carolina Panthers

It's an unlikely rivalry considering these two teams are across the country from one another, but over the past four seasons, the Carolina Panthers and Seattle Seahawks have squared off five times in games that are becoming must-see TV.

The Seahawks, who have gone to back-to-back Super Bowls as NFC champs, are where the Panthers hope to be, duplicating a similar style of play with a strong defense and blue-collar running game that includes a dual-threat quarterback in Cam Newton.

With Carolina handing Seattle a rare loss at home earlier in the 2015 season and both teams on a crash course to potentially meet again in the postseason this year, this is a rivalry that's great for the league—and already has fans getting involved in interesting ways.

Jordan Spieth-Dustin Johnson

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The best new rivalry in golf might not be the one between Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy—as many would suggest—but a developing one that sees Spieth against Dustin Johnson.

With the two players going head-to-head and finding themselves towards the top of the leaderboards in a number of different major tourneys this year, Johnson's collapse on the 18th green at the U.S. Open leaves him hunting what Spieth has, as his putting blunder handed the world's No. 1-ranked player his second major victory of 2015.

This might mean more to DJ than Spieth, but it's something that could be the best on the golf course as Johnson chases his first major win.

Los Angeles Clippers-Golden State Warriors

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Prior to last season and this year's unbelievable start, the Golden State Warriors were thought of as dark horses in the Western Conference, often mentioned behind favorites like the San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Clippers.

With the rise of the Dubs, though, the team they've seemed to get really testy with is the Clips, with players from both sides providing trash talk to throw gasoline onto this fire.

To put it bluntly, it's the NBA's best rivalry right now, with something always on the line and epic contests anytime the teams take the hardwood against one another—and we should all hope that this continues for the next few years, because it's a new battle that's awesome to watch.