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Raptors vs. Warriors NBA Finals Game 4 preview notes
InsideHoops.comJune 7, 2019
5:38 p.m. ET
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RAPTORS NBA FINALS GAME 4 PREVIEW NOTES
The Toronto Raptors continue the 2019 NBA Finals with Game 4 at Oracle Arena on Friday night. The Raptors are 7-17
(.292) all-time at Oracle Arena and have won back-to-back road games (regular season and playoffs) for the first time
since 2000-02. Toronto is currently 5-4 on the road during the 2019 NBA Playoffs and have won at least one road game in
each of their four playoff series.
Toronto has made 10 or more three-pointers in nine consecutive games (May 15 – Jun. 5) including 17 in Game 3 at Golden State in the NBA Finals. The only teams to make more three-pointers in an NBA Finals game are Cleveland (24 on June 9, 2017) and Golden State (18 on June 4, 2017). The Raptors are shooting .375 (127-339) over the last nine games and have a 6-3 record. Kyle Lowry leads the team shooting .453 (29-64), followed by Fred VanVleet .478 (22-46).
Danny Green moved into ninth place on the NBA’s career list for Finals three-pointers made, passing Michael Jordan and Manu Ginobili (42 Finals threes each). Green now has 47 Finals three-pointers. He shot 6-for-10 from three-point range in Game 3 vs. Golden State for a series-best 18 points. Green has made multiple three-pointers in three consecutive games and three-or-more six times during the 2019 playoffs.
Kawhi Leonard is shooting .923 (36-39) at the free throw line in the Finals vs. Golden State. His 36 free throws were the most made through the first three games of an NBA Finals series since Jerry West had 37 in the 1970 Finals. West also totaled 39 free throws through the first three games of the 1962 NBA Finals. Leonard set an NBA Finals record by shooting a perfect 16-for-16 at the free throw line in Game 2 vs. Golden State.
Kawhi Leonard recorded his 13th game in the post-season with 30 or more points. He led the Raptors in scoring with 30 in Game 3 at Golden State. Leonard joins Kobe Bryant (2009, 2010), LeBron James (2017, 2012) and Allen Iverson (2001) as the only players since 2000-01 to record 13 or more games with 30+ points during a playoff run. Bryant had 15 games with 30+ points during the L.A. Lakers 2009 NBA Championship run.
TOP SINGLE-GAME PLAYOFF SCORING PERFORMANCES: 50 – Vince Carter (May 11, 2005 vs. PHI); 45 – Kawhi Leonard (Apr. 27, 2019 vs. PHI); 41 – Kawhi Leonard (May 12, 2019 vs. PHI); 39 – Kawhi Leonard (May 5, 2019 at PHI); 39 – Chris Bosh (Apr. 26, 2008 vs. ORL); 39 – Vince Carter (May 18, 2001 vs. PHI).
Friday’s Game 4 will mark Toronto’s 10th straight playoff game against the top two offensive teams in the NBA this season during the regular-season – Golden State and Milwaukee. The Warriors ranked first in field goal percentage (.491) and second in points (117.1), while the Bucks were third in field goal shooting (.476) and first in points (118.1). Over the last nine games the Raptors have held both teams to a combined .426 field goal shooting percentage and 105.0 points. Toronto improved to 12-3 in the playoffs when holding opponents under .450 shooting from the field (last: Game 3 at Golden State - .396) and 10-1 when holding opponents under 100 points (last: Game 6 vs. Milwaukee - 94 points).
Fred VanVleet has come off the bench and contributed 10+ points in six consecutive games (May 21-Jun. 5). He is averaging 15.2 points while shooting .571 (33-58) from the field and .571 (20-35) from three-point range. The Raptors are 5-2 during the playoffs when VanVleet contributes 10+ points.
Kyle Lowry passed DeMar DeRozan as Toronto’s all-time playoff leader in field goals made during Game 3 at Golden State. Lowry made 8-of-16 shots in Game 3 for 23 points. He has 398 career field goals made in 70 playoff games with Toronto, passing DeRozan’s 397 field goals. Lowry is also the franchise leader in playoff scoring (1,186 points), threepointers made (152), assists (439), steals (94) and games played (70).
Toronto became the second team in the last 51 years to have six players appear in each of the first three games of an NBA Finals and average more than 12 points per game – Kawhi Leonard (29.0), Pascal Siakam (20.7), Marc Gasol (14.3), Kyle Lowry (14.3), Fred VanVleet (14.3) and Danny Green (12.3).The only other team that did so during that time (1969– 2019) was the Los Angeles Lakers in 1982 (Abdul-Jabbar, Norm Nixon, Jamaal Wilkes, Magic Johnson, Michael Cooper and Bob McAdoo).
WARRIORS NBA FINALS GAME 4 PREVIEW NOTES
This is the fourth time since 2015 the Warriors trail a series, 2-1... The three times the Warriors have trailed, 2-1, are: 2016 Western Conference Finals vs.
Oklahoma City, 2015 NBA Finals vs. Cleveland and 2015 Western Conference Semifinals vs. Memphis... In two of those three series the Warriors won Game 4
(only time they lost was against the Thunder).
Golden State has a 31-25 record in Game 4 in any playoff series, and 13-6 since 2015... In the NBA Finals, the Warriors have a 5-5 all-time record in Game 4, including 3-1 since 2015. • The Warriors have a 17-7 record since 2015 following a loss in the postseason (4-1 in this year's playoffs).
The Warriors have a combined 177 games played in the NBA Finals. Stephen Curry and Shaun Livingston have each played in a Warriors franchise record 25 NBA Finals games.
The Warriors are making their fifth-straight NBA Finals appearance, joining the Celtics (10 straight, 1957-66) as the only teams in NBA history ever to do so.
This is the Warriors’ 11th Finals appearance in franchise history, the third-most in NBA history behind only the Lakers (31) and Celtics (21). Golden State is the sixth franchise in the four major North American sports to make five-or-more consecutive championship appearances, joining the Montreal Canadiens (NHL), Boston Celtics (NBA), Cleveland Browns (NFL), New York Yankees (MLB) and New York Islanders (NHL).
The Warriors had nine days in between series, tied for the most days in between series for the Warriors since the NBA began using the 16-team, four-round playoff format in 1984... Golden State had nine days in between the conference finals and the 2017 NBA Finals... According to the Elias Sports Bureau, since the 1983-84 season, the most days off between playoff series for any team is 10 days, done twice: 2003-04 Indiana (First Round/Semifinals) and 2002-03 New Jersey (conference finals/NBA Finals).
The Warriors have a 29-10 record in playoff games when Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andrew Bogut start, according to the Elias Sports Bureau... Golden State has won 11 of the last 13 games in which these four have started together... The Warriors' all-time regular season record when this quartet starts is 110-15.
Toronto defeated Golden State 123-109 in Game 3 of the 2019 NBA Finals and now leads the series 2-1.
The Warriors are 7-4 all-time in Game 3 of the NBA Finals (2-3 since 2015)… Golden State is 34-32 all-time in Game 3 of any postseason series (11-9 since 2015).
Tonight marked Golden State’s first Finals Game 3 played at home since 1975 (game played at the Cow Palace).
Golden State extended its franchise record streak of postseason games scoring 100-or-more points to 25 games.
The Warriors deployed their 10th unique starting lineup of the postseason, marking the most lineups used in a single postseason by any team since starting lineups began being tracked in the 1970-71 season.
With a capacity crowd of 19,596 Golden State recorded its 341st consecutive sellout (regular season and playoffs), the longest streak in franchise history.
Stephen Curry scored a postseason career-high 47 points (previous: 44 on May 6, 2013 at San Antonio), becoming the ninth player in NBA history to score 45- plus points in an NBA Finals game… Tonight marked his sixth career-playoff outing of 40-or-more points (Warriors are 4-2 in those games)… His 17 first-quarter points are tied for the most points he has scored in any quarter in the NBA Finals… He led the team in scoring, rebounds (8) and assists (7).