(USA TODAY Sports)

The Golden State Warriors are one game away from making their fifth consecutive NBA Finals appearance. Their bench has stepped up with Durant sidelined, while Portland’s Damian Lillard hasn’t looked like himself this series. Here’s a sports betting review of Game 3 and a preview of Game 4.

The Golden State Warriors are one win away from sweeping the Portland Trail Blazers after beating them 110-99 on Saturday.

Once again, Steph Curry led the Warriors in points, scoring 21 of his 36 points in the second half.

Draymond Green played a pivotal role in the win, putting up 20 points, 13 rebounds, 12 assists, along with four steals for his third triple-double this postseason and seventh career triple-double in the playoffs– both of which are franchise records.

The Warriors needed another major comeback in Game 3, making it back-to-back games where the Trail Blazers have failed to close out leads of 15 points or more. Now Portland is on the brink of elimination and Golden State could get some much needed rest while the Eastern Conference Finals is guaranteed to go at least five games, if not more.

It’s the Warriors 9th 3-0 series lead under Steve Kerr. The Warriors have completed the sweep in five of the previous eight instances. Oddsmakers listed a Golden State sweep at +500 before the series began. Now the Warriors are -167 on the moneyline at BetStars. Golden State is -3.5 on the spread, Over/Under 219.5

*Be sure to avoid series prices for the sweep now. At nearly every sportsbook you’re better off betting the Warriors Moneyline in Game 4 than to bet on the series correct score of 4-0.

Injury Report

Golden State forward Andrew Iguodala injured his leg and left Game 3. An MRI came back negative, but the veteran is listed as questionable for Monday night’s game in Portland. Iguodala has averaged 30 minutes and 10.6 ppg in this playoffs so far.

As some have suspected, it has come to light that the Warriors aren’t the only ones with injury problems. It was reported that Damian Lillard is playing with separated ribs after Golden State Warriors center Kevin Looney fell on Lillard fighting for a loose ball in Game 2. Lillard has also been seen holding his groin in pain more than once this series.

Kevin Durant is expected to miss the remainder of the Western Conference Finals.

Stat of the Day: Warriors Bench Steps Up in a Big Way

The Warriors bench has stepped up since Kevin Durant went out with a calf injury against the Houston Rockets. In their last four games, the Warriors bench is averaging nearly 34 points on 61% shooting. With Durant healthy, the Warriors bench averaged only 21 ppg on 39% in the first 11 games of the playoffs.

Prop Shop (Monkey Knife Fight)

You’ll want to target Draymond Green’s assists at Monkey Knife Fight for Game 4. Green had 12 assists last game, and his Over/Under is 7.5 assists tonight. I think Green should be good for at least 8 or 9.

Curry’s points prop has gone up a bit thanks to stellar play in the series so far. In fact, via Stats by Stats, Curry is the first player in NBA history to score 35+ points in each of the first three games of a conference or divisional final series while winning all three. For his career, Curry has eight 35-point games in the Western Conference Finals — only Kobe Bryant has more.

Curry’s points prop is up to 33.5 which is a bit high, but if you’re going to take a position here, I have a difficult time taking the Under.

Additional props I’m interested in targeting at Monkey Knife Fight are Klay Thompson Over 23.5 Points and CJ McCollum Under 23.5 points. Thompson has scored at least 24 points in four of five games that Durant has been out. For Portland, McCollum has stepped up as the main offensive facilitator this series while Lillard’s play has clearly been affected by injuries, but McCollum has still yet to reach 24 points.

Breakfast Lean: Draymond Green Over 7.5 Assists; Steph Curry Over 33.5 Points; CJ McCollum Under 23.5

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Temperature Meter: Golden State, Curry Catch Fire in the Third Quarter

As mentioned earlier, it’s taken a pair of comebacks for the Warriors to get to this point. If it wasn’t for big third quarters, Portland could easily be up 2-1. That’s not the case, however.

Golden State hasn’t just been good in the third quarter, they’ve been spectacular. Combined, they’ve outscored the Trail Blazers 68-37 in the third quarters of games 2 and 3. They’re making 55% of their third quarter shots in that same span, including shooting 8-of-16 from the arc.

This resembles a trend that was even more prevalent when Durant was not on the Warriors. The Warriors — Curry especially — seem to score more efficiently as games progress.

The Breakfast Pick

The Trail Blazers’ backs are against the wall and it looks like the series is over. Golden State has been great even without Durant. You know they want to get this series over as quickly as possible to give their legs a rest as they wait to see who comes out of the Easter Conference Finals.


Damian Lillard and the Trail Blazers won’t bow down just because they’re behind 3-0, though. The spread has completely flipped from what it was during the first game in Portland. Now the Trail Blazers are 3.5-point home underdogs, two games after being 3-point favorites on Saturday.

Portland has shown the potential to beat Golden State, they just haven’t been able to close out the deal. I still lean Golden State 3Q (-0.5), but -3.5 is too much. I actually think it’s reasonable to take Golden State in the third quarter but Portland +3.5 for the game. You might end up losing juice when all is said and done, but I think it’s more plausible to win both than lose both.

Breakfast Pick: Golden State Warriors 3Q -0.5; Portland Trail Blazers +3.5 for the game (FanDuel Sportsbook)

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