Splashdown: Curry bounces back, leads Warriors to Game 4 win

Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James (23) exchanges words with Golden State Warriors’ Draymond Green (23) in the fourth quarter of Game 4 of the NBA Finals at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, on Friday, June 10, 2016.

Through the first three games of the series, Curry averaged 16 points – 14.1 points below his season average – while shooting 43.6 percent from the field and 40 percent from 3-point range. In Game 4, it was Curry exploding, scoring 38 points and hitting seven 3s.

“We started settling a little bit for the three-point shot when we kind of got down”, LeBron James admitted.

In other words, exactly as they did in Game 4. So when he made that shot, it was a good indication he was feeling better about himself and about the way the game was going. If we do that, our offense will get going. “I just think it was just the way the game played out”.

Steph Curry’s fellow Splash Brother Klay Thompson also had a big game to support the MVP.

Down eight early in the third and up two headed into the fourth, the Golden State Warriors defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers 108-97 on Friday. But that’s just how the National Basketball Association has evolved and doesn’t invalidate Golden State’s record, which they will likely extend to 89 wins if they defeat the Cavs in the Finals. Played hero ball. The Warriors needed him to. The Cavs let the Warriors score 58 second-half points. The rejection led to a Klay Thompson transition three to cut the lead to two, 63-61, four minutes into the third quarter.

Having been beaten for the title by the San Antonio Spurs in 2014 and overpowered by the Warriors previous year, another Finals failure would drop James to a career 2-5 record in NBA Championship series.

With painstaking precision, the Warriors built on their lead, possession by possession. Is it really that offensive in the heat of the moment in the fourth quarter of an NBA Finals game? That sounds like an insane hallmark for a 73-win outfit, but Golden State engineered many of its victories by putting on inspired bursts that overshadowed much longer periods of malaise. They looked like the team that led the league in 3-pointers, as well as 3-point percentage. This scoring downpour effectively puts the game out of Cleveland’s reach. Play continued as the two big men started to jaw at one another.

Green, who kicked Oklahoma City’s Steven Adams in the groin area during the Western Conference finals and was fined $25,000 a day later for that play, was asked what he and James were saying to one another. “But in the NBA Finals you’ve got to lay it all on the line. It is what it is”, said Draymond Green about the fourth quarter skirmish with James.

“We answered the bell”, said Curry, who displayed the skills that have made him one of the world’s best players. “Being a guy with pride, a guy with three kids and a family, things of that nature, some things just go overboard, and that’s where he took it, and that was it”.

Here is the position the Cavs find themselves in today: No team has ever come back from a 3-1 deficit to win the NBA Finals.

On paper years from now, it’ll seem like it was easy.

However, LeBron James is not ready to throw in the towel just yet.

But Cavaliers coach Tyronn Lue, well aware that the odds are stacked against his team, had a blunt message. “So we might as well come home with a win and play on our home floor again”.

Since the Cleveland Browns won their last football title in 1964 – the championship game wasn’t even known as the Super Bowl then – Cleveland has experienced 147 NBA, NFL, MLB and National Hockey League opening days with title dreams that ultimately were dashed. He told the Cavaliers to follow his lead, took the blame when they fell behind 2-0 in the series, has tried to say and do all the right things.