The loss of Stephen Curry seems to have finally caught up for the Golden State Warriors, who fell to the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 3 on Saturday. In retrospect, the Blazers put on one heck of a show in front of their home crowd that night, and will look to replicate that same magic this Monday for the fourth game of the series.
Will Portland make this Western Conference rivalry even more thrilling by tying the series at two games apiece, or will Golden State’s depth rise to the occasion once more? Let’s take a closer look at this blockbuster showdown below.
Afterwards, check out our previews for San Antonio vs. Oklahoma City and Toronto vs. Miami for a couple of other thrilling Game 4 matches on tap.
Warriors vs. Trail Blazers Game 4 Preview
Where: Moda Center, Portland
When: Monday, May 9, 2016, 10:30 PM ET
Line: Golden State Warriors at Portland Trail Blazers – view all NBA lines
TV Broadcast: TNT
Betting on the Golden State Warriors
Is it time for the Golden State Warriors to hit the panic button?
Curry’s return for Game 4 this Monday is still up in the air as per Golden State head coach Steve Kerr, but at least the team’s other stars are still doing their utmost best of holding down the fort without their best player. Draymond Green nearly got another triple-double in Game 3 with his stunning line of 37-9-8 (with eight makes from three-point range), while Klay Thompson added a whopping 35 points and five makes from deep himself.
Unfortunately, Portland’s Damian Lillard was just totally hellbent on prevailing with a win for the Blazers on Saturday night, and Green and Thompson saw little help from the rest of their teammates to help the Dubs’ cause. Golden State’s bench scored just 18 points in Game 3, with Leandro Barbosa accounting for 10 of those points all on his own.
Still, the Warriors did a lot of things right in Game 3 in spite of the final score’s sizeable margin. They won the assists battle over the Blazers that evening, 29-19, and also shot better from the field at 47.7 percent compared to Portland’s 46.5 percent.
Another trend in favor of the Dubs is the fact that they have won six of their last nine road games (but just 4-5 ATS during that span). And if the wins from Games 1 and 2 of the series – both without Curry in the lineup, mind you – are any indication as well, they can still very much get over Saturday’s loss and bounce back with a vengeance.
Betting on the Portland Trail Blazers
Leave it to the Portland Trail Blazers’ main man, Damian Lillard, to provide the flashy heroics in this series.
Lillard scored a career playoff-best 40 points to go with 10 dimes and just two turnovers in Saturday night’s Game 3 victory for Portland, mimicking Curry much to the delight of the Rip City crowd. Over half of Lillard’s scoring output came from downtown, having drained eight three-pointers like Golden State’s Draymond Green in the contest.
Unlike the Warriors, Portland got a much better all-around performance from its supporting cast to back-up its superstar’s monster outing. Al-Farouq Aminu had 23 points of 4-of-5 shooting from beyond the arc, while C.J. McCollum added 22 points, five boards and four assists as well.
Speaking of three’s, the Blazers fought fire with fire against the sharp-shooting Dubs in Game 3, and came out victorious for it. They made 17 of their 30 shots from downtown (56.7 percent), which was way better than Golden State’s 48.3-percent shooting from deep that evening. Another sizzling effort from long distance is not far from happening for the Blazers again, as they have shot a respectable 46.3 percent from three-point range against the Warriors this season.
Then again, Portland better not squander Game 3’s momentous win heading into Monday’s contest. Although the Blazers have won their last two at the Moda Center, they are still just 3-5 in their last eight home games against Golden State (SU/ATS). And if Curry does indeed make his return in Game 4, Saturday’s high may just as easily die down along with the Rip City crowd’s expectations.
Writer’s Prediction
The Warriors steal another one on the road without Curry, 115-109.
Create a betting account now to cash in from all the fast-paced action of the NBA Playoffs in an instant!
