NBA Finals G4 Preview: The Thunder is facing a life-and-death moment, and the second leader must work together to do his best

After the NBA Finals match was announced this season, the outside world's hopes for the Western Conference champion Thunder have become increasingly optimistic, mainly for two reasons: first, they stood out in the fiercely competitive Western Conference playoffs and proved their strength; second, they performed strongly against Eastern Conference teams during the regular season and lost only one game.

However, the progress of the finals surprised many fans. The Pacers have now taken a 2-1 lead in the first three games, and the two sides are about to continue their fourth game in Indiana. For the Thunder, this is undoubtedly a life-and-death battle. If they fail, they will face great risks and have a high probability of missing the first championship in the team history!

Assuming that the Thunder cannot defeat the Pacers in Game 4, they will be in a dilemma of falling behind 1-3. In NBA history, there have been only 13 such large-scale reversals, and the chance of a reversal is only 4.4%. It is worth noting that in the history of the Finals, there was only one 1-3 major reversal, and that was when LeBron James at the peak defeated the Warriors with 73 wins and 9 losses. If young thunders fall into such a desperate situation, their mentality may be affected, thereby affecting overall performance. Therefore, this fourth battle is crucial to the Thunder.

If the Thunder can win away in this game, the situation in the finals will become 2-2 draw, and the next key battle will be back to Russia. When they play at home, their chances of winning match points will increase significantly, thus taking the initiative in the championship. The Pacers understand this too, so in the upcoming fourth game, they will definitely go all out to meet the Thunder’s challenge. In particular, the defense against Alexander will become the top priority. The Pacers will use the turn of pressing to consume the new MVP's physical strength, making it unable to show off their power at the end of the game.

The Thunder lost two games in the finals because they were reversed by the Pacers, and Alexander's decline in form was one of the key factors. Legendary star Magic Johnson pointed out after the third game that the Pacers' full-game pressing made Alexander exhausted, causing him to fail to perform well in the last quarter.

In order to avoid repeating the tragedy, the Thunder need other players to step up. After the head coach chose to give up Harten, it was not easy for Homegren to play efficient offenses against the Pacers' inside double Tattner and Siakam. In this case, Jaylen Williams, the second in command, must charge all the way in the first three quarters, not only to actively score, but also to mobilize teammates through passing to maximize the energy saving of Alexander.

As the core of the entire team, Alexander's performance at critical moments is particularly important. He only needs to show his attack ability in the fourth quarter to significantly improve the Thunder's chances of winning. If Alexander still fights in the first three quarters in the fourth game of the finals, then even if he leads slightly, there is no shortage of danger of being reversed. Whether the Thunder can equalize the series score in Indiana, let's wait for the result!