The Golden State Warriors and the New York Knicks winning their Game 5 against the Los Angeles Lakers and the Miami Heat, respectively, to keep their playoff run and title aspirations alive poses an all-important question: How many times have NBA teams turned around a 3-1 deficit?
In recent years, the feat has occurred five times, and the number could very well be seven if the Warriors and the Knicks manage to stage incredible comebacks in the second round of the playoff series. Statistically, the first 60 years of the NBA saw the feat achieved eight times.
To quickly recap, the Warriors pulled off a comprehensive 121-106 win at the Chase Center on Wednesday night, while the Knicks staved off elimination with a 112-103 win. Both teams have forced a Game 6, and on that note, we take a look at the teams that have managed to bounce back after a 3-1 trail to win 4-3.
2015 NBA Playoffs: Houston Rockets vs. LA Clippers
The LA Clippers buoyed by Blake Griffin’s triple-double won Game 1, while James Harden responded in Game 2 to even the series. The Clippers took Games 3 and 4 at home on the back of JJ Redick and Deandre Jordan’s performances.
That’s as far as they got as the Rockets turned on the jets for the remainder of the games. After managing to keep their playoff hopes alive with a win in the fifth contest, they had a stellar Game 6, overcoming a 19-point deficit and then going on a 49-18 run in the fourth quarter. This meant a Game 7, which they won 113-110 to ouster the Clippers.
2016 NBA Playoffs: Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Golden State Warriors
Perhaps the Warriors’ confidence in being down but not out stems from their experience during the 2016 NBA playoffs when they completed a 4-3 series win against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Game 1 saw OKC win 108-102, while the Warriors responded with a 118-91 win in the next game. The tussle continued with the Thunder taking Games 3 and 4 by beating Golden State comprehensively. Staving off series defeat, the Warriors managed to pip Kevin Durant and Co. in Game 5.
Klay Thompson stunned Oklahoma in Game 6 with a series-high 41 points to equalize the series in Game 6. The series decider was a low-scoring affair which the Warriors managed to win 96-88.
2016 NBA Finals: Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Golden State Warriors
The Warriors were favorites to win the series after gaining a 3-1 lead in the 2016 NBA Finals, but this time LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers were in no mood to relent as they captured Games 5 to 7 with some strong performances.
The advantage for the Cavs was Draymond Green’s Game 5 suspension which they made full use of to force a Game 6. The final Game 7 was electric with James’ marking his iconic block on Andre Iguodala. Kyrie Irving played his part by converting a three-point shot to give the Cavs the lead, while their defense stifled Stephen Curry, who missed a shot to seal the game in favor of Cleveland.
2020 NBA Playoffs: Denver Nuggets vs. Utah Jazz
Jamal Murray and Donovan Mitchell were locked in, in one of the most intense playoff battles in the bubble. While the Jazz were formidable in the first half of the series extending their lead to 3-1, Murray and Jokic were instrumental in pulling back wins to help the Denver Nuggets extend their postseason journey.
Jokic channeled his inner Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to sink a hook shot with 27.8 seconds remaining in regulation. For the Jazz, it was pure heartbreak as Mike Conley’s game-winning three rimmed out.
2020 NBA Playoffs: LA Clippers vs. Denver Nuggets
It was a second-time ouster for the LA Clippers in the playoffs after a dominating 3-1 start to their playoff run, and this time, it came at the hands of the Nuggets, who, after beating the Jazz, were under the pump again in the Western Conference semifinals.
It was the Murray-Jokic combination again that did it for the Nuggets as they became the only team to upset an opposition with a 3-1 lead twice in the same season. But despite their heroics, they lost 4-1 to the Los Angeles Lakers in the Conference Finals.
Can The Warriors Repeat Their 2016 Heroics Again?
Given their championship DNA and experience, the Warriors cannot be counted out of the contest yet, even if they are still trailing 3-2 in the series. The Lakers still need just one win, but expect the defending champions to have a say in it.
Earlier, Green had revealed the Warriors’ mindset for Game 5. “I think that every game that you win from this point on flips the pressure to the other team,” he said.
“Every game won in this series flips the pressure to the other team. I don’t care if it’s Game 1, I don’t care if it’s Game 6. The only time that the pressure doesn’t flip to the other team is when you win Game 7. Once Game 7 is won, that team goes home and you move on. So for us, the goal is to win one game. We’ve been here before and we know what it takes.”
They surely do, and this series, safe to say, is far from over.
