Tune-In Tidbits: 2021 NBA Finals, Game 4
In five games vs. Phoenix this season, Giannis Antetokounmpo is averaging 36.6 points, 12.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists.
• Giannis Antetokounmpo followed up his 42-point, 12-rebound performance in Game 2 with a 41-point, 13-rebound, 6-assist masterpiece in Game 3. Can he keep this streak alive and become only the fifth player since the 1984 Playoffs with at least three consecutive 40-point playoff games? Only one player has done it in The Finals: Michael Jordan in 1993 against Phoenix.
| PLAYER | GAMES | START | END | ROUND(S) | PTS | PPG |
| Michael Jordan | 4 | 6/11/93 | 6/18/93 | Finals | 182 | 45.5 |
| Bernard King | 4 | 4/19/84 | 4/27/84 | First | 177 | 44.3 |
| Jamal Murray | 3 | 8/23/20 | 8/30/20 | First | 142 | 47.3 |
| Allen Iverson | 3 | 6/1/01 | 6/6/01 | East Finals, Finals | 138 | 46.0 |
| Michael Jordan | 3 | 5/9/90 | 5/13/90 | East Semis | 139 | 46.3 |
| Michael Jordan | 3 | 5/3/89 | 5/7/89 | First | 138 | 46.0 |
• Devin Booker’s 10 points marked his second-lowest scoring game of the season (regular season and playoffs) and only the fourth time he’s been held under 15 points. How did he respond to those low-scoring games? In the games immediately following a sub-15 point game, Booker averaged 24 points on 51.9% shooting with 4.3 assists and 4.0 rebounds in 33.7 minutes per game.
| MATCH UP | W/L | MIN | PTS | REB | AST | FGM | FGA | FG% |
| Apr 15, 2021 – PHX vs. SAC | W | 31 | 23 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 19 | 42.1 |
| Jan 20, 2021 – PHX @ HOU | W | 35 | 24 | 5 | 2 | 10 | 18 | 55.6 |
| Dec 31, 2020 – PHX @ UTA | W | 35 | 25 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 58.8 |
| Summary | 3-0 | 33.7 | 24.0 | 4.0 | 4.3 | 28 | 54 | 51.9 |
• Milwaukee’s win over Phoenix was its first in five meetings between the regular season and playoffs. While the Suns hold a 4-1 record in games played, the composite score over those five games is 589-584 in favor of Phoenix. After the two regular season meetings were each decided by a single point, the first three games of The Finals have each been decided by 10 points or more.
• The second quarter has been when the winning team has made a run in each of the past two games: Phoenix +14 in Game 2 and Milwaukee +18 in Game 3. Every other quarter in this series has been decided by single digits. The team that has won the second quarter has won all three games of this series.
• Looking back at the Conference finals and Finals rounds since 2014 – the year the NBA changed the Finals format to 2-2-1-1-1 rather than 2-3-2 – there have been seven instances when the home team won the first three games of the series to set up a Game 4 with the series at 2-1 and the lower-seeded team at home. The lower-seeded home team is 4-3 in those Game 4s to even the series. But the higher-seeded teams have gone on to win the series four out of seven times. The Bucks are looking to come back against the Suns, the same way the Raptors came back against them in the 2019 East finals.
2014 West finals (Spurs vs. Thunder)
• Game-by-game winners: SAS (H), SAS (H), OKC (H), OKC (H), SAS (H), SAS (A)
• Game 4 result, series result: lower seed even series 2-2, loses series in 6
2016 East finals (Cavaliers vs. Raptors)
• Game-by-game winners: CLE (H), CLE (H), TOR (H), TOR (H), CLE (H), CLE (A)
• Game 4 result, series result: lower seed even series 2-2, loses series in 6
2016 NBA Finals (Warriors vs. Cavaliers)
• Game-by-game winners: GSW (H), GSW (H), CLE (H), GSW (A), CLE (A), CLE (H), CLE (A)
• Game 4 result, series result: higher seed takes 3-1, loses series in 7
2018 East finals (Celtics vs. Cavaliers)
• Game-by-game winners: BOS (H), BOS (H), CLE (H), CLE (H), BOS (H), CLE (H), CLE (A)
• Game 4 result, series result: lower seed evens series 2-2, wins series in 7
2019 East finals (Bucks vs. Raptors)
• Game-by-game winners: MIL (H), MIL (H), TOR (H), TOR (H), TOR (A), TOR (A)
• Game 4 result, series result: lower seed evens series 2-2, wins series in 6
2020 West finals (Lakers vs. Nuggets)
• Game-by-game winners: LAL (H), LAL (H), DEN (H), LAL (A), LAL (A)
• Game 4 result, series result: higher seed takes 3-1 lead, wins series in 5
2020 NBA Finals (Lakers vs. Heat)
• Game-by-game winners: LAL (H), LAL (H), MIA (H), LAL (A), MIA (A), LAL (A)
• Game 4 result, series result: higher seed takes 3-1 lead, wins series in 6
Note: 2020 Playoffs contested at neutral site, with home and away status determined by seeding
