Golden State Warriors: 5 takeaways from Game 4 vs. Cleveland Cavaliers

The Golden State Warriors lost for the first time this postseason, falling to the Cleveland Cavaliers 137-116 in Game 4 of the 2017 NBA Finals. The loss itself hardly tarnishes what has been an all-time great playoff run, but does create a sudden sense of urgency.

The Golden State Warriors played their worst game of the 2017 NBA Finals on the same night that the Cleveland Cavaliers played their best. The result was a 49-point first quarter, an 86-point half and a 137-point game for Cleveland, as well as the Warriors’ first loss of the playoffs.

The best-and-worst nature of Game 4 does not make it an anomaly, however. Cleveland is capable of stringing together performances like this, as the Warriors learned last June.

Of course, the Warriors are in control of their own play, as they are of the series. If they return to their standard level of performance at home in Game 5, they’ll likely be NBA champions in two days. If they reach their peak level, there’s nothing Cleveland can do, short of replicating its all-time great Game 4 performance.

Our takeaways for Game 4 of this series focus on shooting, pace and rotations, three things the Warriors need to go differently to make this year’s Game 5 erase the memory of last year’s.