NBA Playoffs
Western Conference Finals
Tip-off: Tuesday, 9:05 p.m. ET
Line: Golden State -1.5, Total: 221.5

The Warriors will be hoping to prevent a 3-1 series deficit when they face the Thunder in Game 4 on Tuesday.

Golden State was the most dominant team in regular season history, but the team now finds itself in serious trouble in the Western Conference Finals. The Warriors were absolutely embarrassed on Sunday night, losing 133-105 as 2.5-point favorites in Game 3. They shot a miserable 41.3% from the floor in that loss, but they also allowed the Thunder to make 50.0% of their shots. The Warriors will need to be a lot better on both ends of the floor in Tuesday’s Game 4 or they’ll be facing an insurmountable 3-1 series deficit. One thing that bodes well for Golden State is the fact that the team is 10-2 ATS revenging a loss versus an opponent this season. The team is also 18-8 ATS revenging a straight up loss as a favorite versus an opponent over the past two seasons. Both teams will be entering this game at full strength, so hopefully injuries will not play a role in the outcome of this game.

If the Warriors are going to get back into this series then PF Draymond Green (16.6 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 6.5 APG, 2.1 BPG, 1.5 SPG in playoffs) will need to play well for the Warriors. He has been miserable in this series and truly hit rock bottom last game, scoring just six points on 1-for-9 shooting from the field. Green also had just four boards and three assists and his team is counting on him to post a near triple-double. He’ll also need to keep his cool in this game, as Green is a flagrant foul away from an automatic suspension. PG Stephen Curry (25.3 PPG, 5.6 APG, 5.4 RPG, 1.6 SPG in playoffs) is also going to need to step his game up moving forward. The regular season MVP has been lousy for Golden State, shooting just 7-for-17 from the field and 3-for-11 from the outside in Game 3. He had 24 points in the game, but that total was a bit misleading and he must find a way to be more efficient the rest of the series. It’d be wise for Steve Kerr to put the ball in his hands a lot more in Game 4.

The Thunder have been playing extremely well in the postseason and look like the better team in this series. The reason Oklahoma City has emerged with a 2-1 series lead has been because of the emergence of SF Kevin Durant (27.8 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 3.3 APG in playoffs). It was not long ago that Durant was considered the best player in the NBA and he has been playing like it throughout the postseason. He had 33 points on 10-for-15 shooting from the field in Game 3 and will need to continue to be aggressive moving forward. The Warriors have no match for him and his jumper is better than ever right now. It has also helped the Thunder that PG Russell Westbrook (25.3 PPG, 11.1 APG, 2.2 SPG in playoffs) has outplayed Curry in this series. Westbrook had 30 points, 12 assists, eight rebounds and two steals in Game 3 of this series and his athleticism and speed have given the Warriors a ton of issues. He’ll need to keep attacking the rim the remainder of this series.