Final thoughts
After all the talk about “What is Wrong With Steph Curry,” it felt almost inevitable that he would have his best game of the Finals. Curry racked up 38 points, plus 6 assists and 5 rebounds. When Curry is playing like this, the Warriors are very difficult to beat, although the Cavaliers should be credited for staying in this game as long as they did. Needless to say, Cleveland have a very tall task ahead of them, and zero margin of error, if they want to come back and win this series now.
We’ll be covering the NBA Finals here at the Guardian for however long it lasts. This will, however, end today’s live coverage of Game 4. Thanks to everybody who followed along with us today, especially those who contributed. Ciao!
The Warriors have won Game 4!
The Golden State Warriors take a 3-1 lead in the NBA Finals. They can close out the series in Game 5 at home at Oracle Arena on Monday.
Warriors win!
Warriors 108-97 Cavaliers, FINAL
Richard Jefferson fouls out, putting Curry on the line to hit two more free throws and that will do it. The Warriors have won Game 4 of the NBA Finals!
Warriors 106-97 Cavaliers, :13, 4th quarter
Channing Frye, hey where did that guy go, is in the game, basically just because he has fouls to give. He fouls Curry who, of course, makes both free throws.
James makes a quick layup. Frye fouls Curry again. He makes both free throws.
James makes a quick dunk. Jefferson fouls Klay Thompson. He makes both free throws.
Are you noticing a trend here?
Warriors 100-91 Cavaliers, :43, 4th quarter
The only good thing about the string of blowouts that we’ve had is that it’s meant escaping the cavalcade of free throws that happen whenever a game is still within reach.
Smith fouls Klay Thompson. He makes both free throws.
Warriors 98-91 Cavaliers, :45, 4th quarter
LeBron with another layup. The Warriors take a 20 second timeout.
Warriors 98-89 Cavaliers, :54, 4th quarter
LeBron makes the first free throw but misses the second. Curry gets the rebound. On the other end, Curry hits a layup and that might be the game right there.
Warriors 96-88 Cavaliers, 1:12, 4th quarter
LeBron James blocks Iguodala’s layup, Klay Thompson misses a three… the Warriors can’t score but they start running the clock. Irving turns the ball over, Curry gets the steal. Green misses a three. J.R. Smith gets the rebound. Curry fouls James on the way to the basket.
And there’s a delay as security has to deal with a moronic spectator who has decided to try to get on the court.
Warriors 96-88 Cavaliers, 2:08, 4th quarter
Okay never mind. This officiating is kinda ridiculous. After a bit of a tussle, the officials call a double foul that leads to a jump ball situation. Then, after Irving misses a layup, the officials call yet anther jump ball. This time, the Cavs get the possession and actually do something with it, as Irving knocks down a shot to cut down the Warriors lead.
Golden State calls a timeout.
Warriors 96-86 Cavaliers, 3:21, 4th quarter
Finally someone scores. Kyrie Irving hits a layup which would help the Cavaliers get back on track but, guess what, Curry immediately hits a three.
Warriors 90-84 Cavaliers, 4:13, 4th quarter
And, um, let’s not talk about this stretch of failed hero-ball. As you can see, nobody has scored.
Email from Michelle Smith:
Are the refs blind?
What the hell is going on with these terrible refs?
I think it speaks to just how bad the officiating has been in general this postseason that I haven’t really noticed it being any worse than normal.
Warriors 93-84 Cavaliers, 5:56, 4th quarter
The Cavaliers offense feels like it’s drying up. Meanwhile, the Warriors continue to get the second-chances. Curry ends up missing an easy layup, but even that ends up going against Cleveland as Iguodala gets the rebound and dishes it to Barnes who converts it into a three-pointer. The Cavaliers, facing their biggest deficit, take a timeout.
Warriors 90-84 Cavaliers, 7:30, 4th quarter
Irving is on the line. He only makes one of two. I’ve got a feeling that Cleveland is going to regret leaving these points on the table. On the other end, Curry makes a layup.
Warriors 88-83 Cavaliers, 8:26, 4th quarter
Tristan Thompson gets to the line, but he misses both free throws. That’s not good news considering that this one could go down to the wire.
Livingston scores yet again.
Warriors 86-83 Cavaliers, 9:03, 4th quarter
Except you know what happens next. Yep. The Warriors tie it up, it’s Game 1 hero Shaun Livingston with a jumper and we start things all over gain.
LeBron dunks. Harrison Barnes, who’s been quiet since way back in the early minutes of the first quarter, hits a three. I have no idea how many lead changes there’s been in this game. It feels like millions.
James attempts a bad three-pointer, Shumpert manages to get the rebound but loses it. Thompson gets the steal. Iguodala gets a good look that he drains…
And the Cavaliers take a full timeout.
Warriors 79-81 Cavaliers, 11:02, 4th quarter
Kevin Love starts off the fourth by draining a basket. I guess no more of the “better off without Love” narrative. At least not tonight. LeBron James makes a layup and the Cavaliers have a lead!
Andrew Sparrow:
We might be done here - Cav’s defence has collapsed this half, LeBron is having a poor game, and the Dubs are starting to hit their threes.
It keeps looking like the Warriors are about to take over but every time the Cavaliers seemed like they were about to wobble they managed to strike back. I think this is anybody’s game.
Warriors 79-77 Cavaliers, end of the 3rd quarter
The Cavaliers strike back though. Irving makes a jumper, Kevin Love gets on the line after being fouled by Iguodala where he hits both and it’s a two-point game.
Curry’s shot at the buzzer…
Is just off the rim. That looked like it had a chance.
Warriors 79-73 Cavaliers, 1:00, 3rd quarter
Warriors get nearly a zillion chances here to make a shot, the Cavaliers can get stops but can’t seem to get a rebound. Eventually, Curry knocks down a shot. James misses a layup.
Draymond Green gets to the line, where he makes the first free throw. He misses the second, but Varejao gets the rebound. Andre Iguodala gets a dunk. The Warriors getting all the second-chance opportunities.
Warriors 74-73 Cavaliers, 2:24, 3rd quarter
Steph Curry misses a three. Well, that’s a bit better luck for Cleveland. Irving then makes a shot to cut into the Warriors lead. That’s even better.
Green makes a layup which the officials wave off. Instead, Varejao goes to the line, where he hits both free throws anyways.
LeBron James dunks and the Warriors lead is cut back down to one. Warriors take a timeout.
Warriors 72-69 Cavaliers, 3:45, 3rd quarter
That was a 22-14 run from the Warriors, much of it thanks to Curry and Thompson playing like their regular season selves. Former Cavalier Anderson Varejao is in the game for the Warriors… and he’s called for two straight fouls. This adds to the Anderson Varejao: Sleeper Agent theory.
Kevin Love gets to the line and misses two straight free throws and Draymond Green gets the rebound. That could have gone better for Cleveland.
Warriors 72-69 Cavaliers, 4:07, 3rd quarter
Well that was quick.
Curry finds Iguodala for a three, and then Klay finds Curry for another three and just like that the Warriors have regained the lead. The Cavaliers take a time out. Things have gotten super-quiet all of a sudden at Quicken Loans.
Warriors 66-69 Cavaliers, 5:28, 3rd quarter
James sets up Irving for a shot here. Klay Thompson hits a shot here, but it’s only a two-pointer. He’s slipping.
Warriors 64-67 Cavaliers, 7:07, 3rd quarter
Richard Jefferson’s back in the game and makes a layup. Cleveland needed that. Of course, Klay Thompson, who’s in a groove, makes another three pointer.
LeBron hits a jumper here. This is a lot of fun.
Email for Andrew Roberts:
Hunter love the play by play but a bit more objective please? Love-ins for the Warriors on your own time please. Cavs just as capable of turning up the heat as Warriors. And as for Kerr, you are never going to change the ref’s mind whether they are right or wrong, stupid move to lose control like that in a playoff. You shouldn’t be supporting him in that.
Still enjoying your call
Honestly, if anything I’m rooting for a Cavaliers win tonight because that ensures that I get to liveblog Game 6. I’m not rooting against my own financial interest.
Warriors 61-63 Cavaliers, 8:11, 3rd quarter
And here come the Splash Brothers. Curry and Thompson both hit threes and the Cavs lead is back down to two. Tyronn Lue calls a timeout.
Warriors 55-61 Cavaliers, 9:14, 3rd quarter
LeBron James has been having one of the worst three-point shooting seasons of his career, but he makes one here to extend the Cleveland lead.
And NOW J.R. Smith gets called for a foul. This time it puts Klay Thompson to the line, where he knocks down both.
Warriors 53-58 Cavaliers, 11:00, 3rd quarter
And Irivng hits the first field goal of the half as well. Having a pretty solid couple of games, Irving.
After some pretty ragged basketball, Steph Curry hits a three-pointer to cut into the Cleveland lead.
2nd half begins!
Warriors 50-56 Cavaliers, 12:00, 3rd quarter
Apparently the technical foul was called on Luke Walton, rather than Steve Kerr. For what it’s worth. Irving makes the shot.
Upon looking at it, it seems that Kerr had a reason to be upset in thinking that J.R. Smith fouled Iguodala on that half-ending three point attempt. So the technical free throw is basically insult-to-injury here.
Halftime thoughts
Well, okay, it looks like we’re going to get the tight game that we were hoping for here. Well, okay, I guess Warriors and Cavaliers fans would have preferred for a blowout in their team’s favor. Who knows, it still mind end up that way. We know that the Warriors can turn nail-biters into laughters in the span of just a few minutes. Especially since Steph Curry looks a lot more like Steph Curry.
It’s been a crazy, back-and-forth first half here and I’ll be back with some thoughts in just a few here.
Halftime!
Warriors 50-55 Cavaliers, end of the first half
Curry hits a jumper to halt the Cavaliers run at 8-0. Iguodala misses a three pointer to end the first half…. BUT it’s not entirely over as a demonstrative Steve Kerr gets hit with a technical by the officials. That means the Cavaliers will have a free throw coming when the second half starts.
Warriors 48-55 Cavaliers, :34, 2nd quarter
Okay, now here’s a run. LeBron knocks down a shot of his own and assists Smith on a shot of his own. Then Irving and Thompson score and the Cavaliers finally have some serious momentum here.
Warriors 48-47 Cavaliers, 2:24, 2nd quarter
Kevin Love with a three pointer! The Cleveland crowd goes wild…
For approximately three seconds, as Iguodala hits a three-pointer for Golden State. Once again, neither team can get any momentum going here.
And Iguodala steals a ball away from LeBron. Warriors ball. Thompson hits a jumper to tie up the game AND he’s fouled on the play. He knocks down the “and one” and the Warriors have a lead. Again.
Warriors 42-44 Cavaliers, 4:01, 2nd quarter
Well that timeout didn’t go as planned. LeBron James steals the ball from Green and knocks down a shot at the other end.
But Curry gets fouled by Smith on the other end, putting him on the line where he makes one of two free throws. Neither team is getting even a whiff of a run in this first half..
Warriors 41-42 Cavaliers, 4:16, 2nd quarter
J.R. Smith with a three and we’re tied once more! Then Ezeli is called for a defensive three-second call, which means there’s a technical free throw awarded to the Cavaliers. Irving knocks it down and Cleveland regains the lead.
Temporarily, of course. Draymond Green, having a hell of a game so far, gets the rebound from a missed LeBron Jumper and makes a layup.
Which is answered about 5 seconds later by Kyrie Irving who makes a layup of his own. This is just completely crazy. Warriors call a timeout here.
Warriors 39-36 Cavaliers, 5:47, 2nd quarter
Tristan Thompson’s first free throw… bounces out. His second… Also pops out. Livingston picks up the rebound. And Jefferson picks up his third foul trying to block Ezeli. Well, it might turn out that Love is going to be playing most of these minutes anyhow.
Ezeli’s first free throw is… no good. As is his second. Cavaliers fans cheer.
Warriors 39-36 Cavaliers, 5:58, 2nd quarter
Irving drives to the basket. Then James gets to the line, fouled by McAdoo (who is getting an extended run here). He makes one of two.
On the other end, Smith fouls Green. Green hits both of his free throws.
Festus Ezeli comes in to replace McAdoo and almost immediately gets called for a loose ball foul on Tristan Thompson. Cavaliers call another time out.
Man this has been fun so far!
Warriors 37-33 Cavaliers, 7:01, 2nd quarter
Cavaliers can’t get anything going out of the timeout… but Jefferson gets on the line after being fouled by McAdoo. He hits one of two free throws to cut the lead down to one.
But that doesn’t last because Steph Curry does Steph Curry things, hitting a three to extend the Warriors lead.
Email from Michel Bechirian:
Hunter, I didn’t call you Shunter! It’s Michel, and cut that cable go Warriors (and Chelsea!)
An old Guardian reader from Brixton / San Francisco.
My sincerest apologies. Complete mental airball on my part.
Warriors 34-32 Cavaliers, 8:18, 2nd quarter
Matthew Dellavedova gets to the line, another foul on Iguodala, and knocks down two free throws. The game is tied once more, but just for a short while. Livingston gives Golden State the lead back with a mid-ranger.
But he gets called for a foul immediately afterwards. The Cavaliers use this as an opportunity to take a timeout.
Warriors 32-30 Cavaliers, 9:52, 2nd quarter
But then Klay responds with a three to give the Warriors the lead right back.
Warriors 29-30 Cavaliers, 10:15, 2nd quarter
Cavaliers turn the ball over on their first possession on the quarter. The Warriors get the ball, but Shaun Livingston misses a jumper. Love gets the rebound, James gets a look at a three-pointer but his attempt’s no good. Green with the rebound, he gets the ball to Livingston who can’t finish with a layup. He gets his own rebound. Iguodala attempts a three and THAT’S no good.
Finally, LeBron James gets the rebound. Iman Shumpert hits the first bucket of the 2nd quarter, giving the Cavaliers a lead.
Email from Michel Bechirian:
It’s free in the Bay Area with rabbit ears on ABC!
Watching television on an actual television? What is this madness?
Updated
Warriors 29-28 Cavaliers, end of the 1st quarter
J.R. Smith gets to the line to make two free throws to cut the Warriors lead to one by the end of the first quarter. Well, so far I have to say that this has been quite competitive.
Warriors 29-26 Cavaliers, 1:08, 1st quarter
Kevin Love gets fouled, that’s on Iguodala, and gets to the line where he makes both free throws.
On the other end. Wait, what is this? James Michael McAdo with a dunk? That’s probably not a good sign for Cleveland, as far as omens go.
Warriors 27-24 Cavaliers, 1:47, 1st quarter
Curry makes his two free throws. On there other end, Tristan Thompson throws one down to re-tie the game. This is fun.
Oh and hey there’s another three-pointer from Curry. I think he might be back.
Email from Michael Gurson:
Can I have the live stream for Cavs vs Warriors game 4?
I’m getting a lot of these questions. If you’re in the US and have a password from a cable provider, the game is available on WatchESPN. Other than that, well I’m not going to encourage anyone doing anything not-entirely-kosher.
Warriors 22-22 Cavaliers, 2:26, 1st quarter
Irving misses a jumper, Livingston secures the rebound and… LeBron fouls Curry on the other end. The Cavaliers take their first timeout.
Warriors 22-22 Cavaliers, 3:01, 1st quarter
Kevin Love with a layup. Then Jefferson fouls Shaun Livingston, who’s in the game by the way, and makes two free throws and this game is tied yet again.
Warriors 20-20 Cavaliers, 3:49, 1st quarter
Irving was fouled on the play and hits a free throw that un-ties the game. Then LeBron James finally, FINALLY, gets into the game with a layup that energizes the crowd…
Very briefly, because Curry also finally makes his mark. Hitting a three pointer from 25 feel to tie up the game.
Warriors 17-17 Cavaliers, 5:01, 1st quarter
Curry, who has yet to score himself here, dishes an assist to Thompson for a layup to put Golden State back on top. And then we have some Thompson-on-Thompson crime, as Klay fouls Tristan.
And here comes Kevin Love into the game for Tristan. He gets a big hand from this Cleveland crowd, for what that’s worth.
Oh and Irving hits a shot to tie up the game, the crowd is happy about that too.
Warriors 15-15 Cavaliers, 6:03, 1st quarter
And Draymond Green gets to the glass for a layup. The Warriors strike back, though, as Tristan Thompson nails a close-range jumper and gets fouled.
But he misses the free throw.
Warriors 13-13 Cavaliers, 6:47, 1st quarter
Warriors have the ball out of the timeout. Iguodala passes to Klay Thompson who nails a three pointer to tie things back up.
Cavs PA guy wearing a “BELIEVE IN J.R. SMITH” shirt. Need that.
— Sean Highkin (@highkin) June 11, 2016
Warriors 10-13 Cavaliers, 7:05, 1st quarter
Or both teams could suddenly go into explicable scoring droughts, that would also give me a chance to catch up. It looks like Bogut may have hurt his wrist here, which might be something to keep an eye on. He stays in the game for a few plays until he’s relieved by Andre Iguodala.
Finally, Kyrie Irving breaks the tie by drilling a three-pointer and the Warriors call a timeout.
Warriors 10-10 Cavaliers, 9:37, 1st quarter
Another early lead change as Tristan Thompson knocks a shot down. But on the other end, Bogut finds Barnes who drills yet another three. Wow both teams are in full gear already.
Thompson ties things up with a layup. Man I would kill for a timeout here, I’m already winded.
Warriors 7-6 Cavaliers, 10:26, 1st quarter
J.R. Smith hits a three pointer for the lead. That doesn’t last, as Harrison Barnes hits a shot. A ping-pong affair early on here.
Warriors 5-3 Cavaliers, 10:57, 1st quarter
And Kyrie Irving his a three to tie things up. On the other end, Irving gets called for a foul on Draymond Green who makes two free throws.
Opening tip
Warriors 3-0 Cavaliers, 11:29, 1st quarter
Steph Curry gets the opening tip. Green attempts a three-pointer that misses. The Warriors get the rebound however, and Harrison Barnes drills a three to start the scoring.
Cavaliers announcer is way, way too hyped here. Yes, I know there’s no such thing as being too hyped for a NBA Finals game but... well, this dude totally managed it.
Well, the rest of the Cavaliers crowd did most of the singing anyways so it didn’t really matter. Sort of like a National Anthem-by-bullpen.
Okay, I have no idea who this person is singing the National Anthem.
Alright we’re getting closer to the opening tip here. Possibly the biggest game in Cleveland Cavaliers history.
And here’s the lineup announcements...
Cleveland Cavaliers starters
LeBron James, F
Richard Jefferson, F
Kyrie Irving, G
J.R. Smith, G
Tristan Thompson, C
For what it’s worth, it looks like Curry is fairly loose:
That Game 4 #NBAFinals feeling... @stephencurry30 #DubNation 👣 https://t.co/u7dwengT30
— NBA (@NBA) June 11, 2016
Email from Andrew Sparrow:
Saturday morning in Singapore. Cup of tea and Game 4: lovely. Heart wants the Cavs, head says the Dubs can’t be that poor two games straight. Bring it on..
You would think. Of course, we’ve been shocked before during Golden State’s last series.
Golden State Warriors starters
Steph Curry, G
Klay Thompson, G
Harrison Barnes, F
Draymond Green, F
Andrew Bogut, C
Steve Kerr is going with the same starting lineup he put out in Game 3, with Andre Iguodala coming off the bench.
BREAKING
Richard Jefferson is indeed in the starting lineup for the Cleveland Cavaliers, meaning that Kevin Love will be coming off of the bench.
Here’s the main reason I think Steph Curry is going to have a bounceback performance tonight. This is the equivalent of poking a sleeping grizzly bear with a sharp stick:
J.R. Smith: LeBron James and Russell Westbrook deserved MVP more than Stephen Curry https://t.co/BK5fqVfCjE
— Kurt Helin (@basketballtalk) June 10, 2016
Hey, Spike Lee is in the building. And he’s wearing a vaguely hipster-ish tribute to the late Muhammad Ali.
Spike Lee representing The Greatest at Game 4. pic.twitter.com/rK2000xggk
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) June 11, 2016
Predictions
You’re never going to believe this, but I’m picking the Warriors to win. Yes, again. In my mind, there’s no chance the Warriors don’t bounce back from their horrendous performance on Wednesday night, even if Curry continues to struggle.
Honestly, though, I hope I’m wrong, because a Golden State win here would essentially wrap up the series. There’s no scenario where the Cavaliers win three straight games against the Warriors, especially when 2 out or 3 of them will be at Oracle Arena.
I do however think this will finally be a close game. I wouldn’t be shocked if it ended up being a one possession game in the last minute. In fact, you know what? I think we’re headed to overtime tonight.
This may just be wishful thinking on my part. Your predictions? Send them here either via email (Hunter.Felt@theguardian.com) or Twitter (@HunterFelt).
With yesterday an off-day for the series, NBA fans passed the time by thoroughly roasting Steph Curry’s shoes on Twitter last night. This is just a further reminder that inside every basketblogger lies the heart of a snarky fashion critic.
Kevin Love update
Okay, it’s official. Kevin Love will be available for the Cleveland Cavaliers today. Now, the question is whether or not he will be in the starting lineup or whether Cleveland coach Tyronn Lue starts Richard Jefferson and brings Love off the bench. Love’s still a valuable player, but it might not make sense defensively to put him and Irving on the floor at the same time.
We’ll see.
Updated
Hello and welcome
So, hey look at this – the NBA Finals is finally a series! After two straight blowout losses to Golden State, the Cleveland Cavaliers regrouped on Wednesday and utterly demolished the Warriors in Game 3. Today in Game 4, the Cavaliers have a shot of evening up the series.
The strangest aspect to the Cavaliers’ embarrassment of the Warriors was probably just how badly Steph Curry played. There’s a growing sense that the unanimous MVP is more hurt than he’s let on, or, at the very least, feeling the wear and tear of what had to be an exhausting season. Normally one would think that Curry is due for a breakout, something which should deeply concern the Cavaliers, but since returning from the injury he suffered during the series against the Houston Rockets, he’s only occasionally resembled The Greatest Shooter In NBA History.
(Of course, now that we’ve been talking about Curry’s struggles for the last two games, it’s probably inevitable that he’s going to prove us all wrong.)
On the Cleveland side of things, the x-factor will be the (likely) presence of Kevin Love in the lineup. The NBA’s concussion protocol kept Love out for Game 3 and it did not go unnoticed that the Cavaliers played remarkably better without their starting power forward. Some of the credit for that needs to go to the venerable Richard Jefferson, who has probably been the Cavaliers’ second best player here in the Finals.
No that makes no sense to me, either.
It’s hard to see how this game will go, but hopefully what we’ll finally get an actual game and not the fourth straight one-sided beatdown. Up to this point this might be the least captivating Finals in a long, long time. All three games have devolved into blowouts by early in the fourth quarter.
Hopefully that won’t be the case today. We want to hear from you throughout the game. You can email us at Hunter.Felt@theguardian.com or tweet @HunterFelt and we’ll use your thoughts, questions and comments throughout today’s liveblog. It’s the Golden Stave Warriors vs the Cleveland Cavaliers at Quicken Loans Arena. Opening tip is set for a little after 9pm EST, but we’ll be back beforehand.
Updated
Hunter will be here shortly. In the meantime, here’s why the Cavaliers shouldn’t ditch Kevin Love just yet:
How many times can the Cavs realistically do this with next to no production from their second and third units? This is especially true when considering that the Warriors have one of the deepest benches in the NBA, if not the deepest, and got 40 points from their reserves in their Game 2 blowout. This is why it’s an absolute folly to demand Love get frozen in carboniteand dumped in Lake Erie for the rest of the finals. They’re going to need him at some point in the next two games if they want to remain competitive. They will need his scoring ability and his prowess on the glass, even if that’s off the bench.
What they cannot do is allow the hot take machine to dictate their strategy going forward. Steph Curry is a ticking time bomb who will go off eventually. Same with Klay Thompson. We collectively wrote that team off against a superior Oklahoma City after Game 4 of the Western Conference finals, but the Splash Brothers found enough of their groove to turn the series back in their favor. Cleveland will also have to win at least one game in Oakland to claim the championship. To do that, they’re going to need more than five players. Who needs Love? Probably the Cavs.
