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Will the Warriors Keep Their Foot on the Gas in Game 4?

By Andrew Ites

OAKLAND, CA - MAY 20: Draymond Green #23 and Quinn Cook #4 of the Golden State Warriors high five after the game against the Houston Rockets in Game Three of the Western Conference Finals of the 2018 NBA Playoffs on May 20, 2018 at ORACLE Arena in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - MAY 20: Draymond Green #23 and Quinn Cook #4 of the Golden State Warriors high five after the game against the Houston Rockets in Game Three of the Western Conference Finals of the 2018 NBA Playoffs on May 20, 2018 at ORACLE Arena in Oakland, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2018 NBAE (Photo by Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Will the Warriors become complacent after a blowout victory in Game 3, or will they take a 3-1 lead with a win in Game 4?

When the Warriors are fully engaged, they are probably the best basketball team ever assembled.

We saw evidence of that with a comfortable victory in Game 1 and complete dominance in a 41-point victory on Sunday night.

However, we’ve also seen them come out lethargically a few times during this postseason run in a Game 4 loss to the Spurs, a bad loss in Game 3 against New Orleans, and getting beat by the Rockets in Houston in Game 2.

It would be easy for the Warriors to come into Game 4 with less motivation than they had in Game 3.

They’ll be coming off of a 40+ point victory, and it’s difficult to keep any team focused after they just embarrassed their opponent. And I think the Warriors’ players know that they are the better team in this series.

One thing that will help Golden State fight against this complacency is the Oracle Arena crowd. Warriors fans were going absolutely nuts during Steph Curry’s explosion during the third quarter of Game 3, and that kind of energy can prevent their stars from coasting.

Golden State has won an NBA record 16 consecutive home playoff games, and their 17th straight win would give them a commanding lead in this Western Conference Finals.

The Warriors will likely be without Andre Iguodala on Tuesday night, which will have a major effect on their rotations. We’ll see how Steve Kerr chooses to shake things up with Iguodala on the sidelines.

I think the Warriors will know what’s at stake in Game 4, and they’ll avoid coming out flat like they did in Game 2.

Next: Klay Thompson Open to Pay Cut in Contract Extension

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Game Details

Golden State Warriors vs Houston Rockets

Tip-Off: Tuesday, May 22, 2018 at 6:00 p.m. PST

Location: Oracle Arena, Oakland, California

TV: TNT

Radio: 95.7 The Game, Warriors Radio Network

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