Get ready for Sunday’s four-game slate of Game 4s with five key stats to know about each matchup. The Celtics and Raptors are both one win away from advancing to the second round. Can the Sixers and Nets stay alive, or will we know our first second-round matchup by the end of the day.
Game 4: Boston Celtics vs. Philadelphia 76ers (BOS Leads 3-0), 1:00 ET
- The Celtics have outscored the Sixers by 57 points in the 104 minutes that Jayson Tatum has been on the court through the first three games of the series. That is the top plus/minus of any player in the playoffs.
- The Celtics are the only team in the playoffs with three players averaging over 21 points per game: Jayson Tatum (26.7), Jaylen Brown (23.3) and Kemba Walker (21.7).
- The Celtics lead the playoffs in fast break points at 19 per game in the series. Boston’s top three scorers (Jaylen Brown 8.0, Kemba Walker 7.3, Jayson Tatum 6.7) have more fast break points by themselves than Philadelphia has as a team (5.7 per game, 15th in playoffs).
- The Sixers are looking to avoid their first playoff sweep since 1999 (vs. Indiana) and their first opening round exit since 2011 (vs. Miami). Philadelphia’s last four-game losing streak in the playoffs came in the 2001 NBA Finals; after the Sixers won Game 1, the Lakers won the next four to win the title.
- Joel Embiid is one of three players along with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kawhi Leonard to average at least 30 points and 10 rebounds this postseason. Embiid ranks second in first quarter scoring (12.7 PTS) and first in first quarter shooting (68.4%). However, his scoring and shooting percentages have seen a big drop-off after the first quarter. Embiid’s FG% by quarter goes from 68.4% (1st), 46.2% (2nd), 40.0% (3rd) and 21.4% (4th).
Game 4: LA Clippers vs Dallas Mavericks (LAC Leads 2-1), 3:30 ET
- Luka Doncic will be a game-time decision after suffering an ankle injury during Game 3. This season, the Mavericks went 7-7 in games without Luka Doncic in the lineup. Kristaps Porzingis appearing 10 of those 14 games that Luka missed an averaged 27.2 points and 11.8 rebounds.
- Of the 82 players that have attempted at least 10 3-pointers in the playoffs, Seth Curry leads them in 3-point percentage at 60.0% (9-15) through the first three games.
- Kawhi Leonard is the second-leading scorer of the playoffs at 33.3 points per game, trailing only Donovan Mitchell (35.7). Giannis Antetokounmpo (31.3 PPG, 16.0 RPG, 6.3 APG) and LeBron James (23.7 PPG, 11.7 RPG, 10.3 APG) are the only other players averaging at least 20-10-5 this postseason.
- After shooting 50% (24-48) from beyond the arc during the seeding games, Paul George has struggled with his outside shot through the first three games of the playoffs as he is shooting just 24.1% (7-29) from 3-point range.
- The Clippers are allowing the highest shooting percentage at the rim of any playoff team at 73.3%, which is 10 percentage points higher than Dallas, which ranks 10th among the 16 playoff teams. However, Dallas is averaging just 20 shots at the rim per game, which ranks 14th among the 16 playoff teams.
Game 4: Toronto Raptors vs. Brooklyn Nets (TOR Leads 3-0), 6:30 ET
- The Raptors have outscored the Nets by an average of 11.7 points in the fourth quarter of this series. Toronto leads all playoff teams in fourth quarter scoring (34.0 PTS), FG% (58.3%), 3P% (50.0), FT% (91.7%) and assists (8.0 AST).
- The Raptors have been 27.1 points per 100 possessions better with Serge Ibaka on the court (plus-30.3 net rating in 74 minutes) than when he’s on the bench (plus-3.2 net rating in 70 minutes).
- The Raptors (18.0) and Nets (14.7) rank second and third, respectively among playoff teams in fast break points. This series has been played at the third-fastest pace of the first round at 101.00 possessions per 48 minutes.
- Caris LeVert ranks second in the playoffs in assists at 10.7 per game. When you combine the 15.3 points per game he scores himself with the playoff-high 27.3 points that he creates with his assists, LeVert is directly involved with 42.6 Nets points out of the 100.3 scored each game.
- Through three games, Fred VanVleet is averaging a series-high 25.3 points while shooting 54.0% from the field and 54.8% (17-31) from 3-point range. VanVleet has scored at least 20 points in all three games of the series. If he reaches 20 points in Game 4, he will match the longest streak of his career, which was set earlier this season (Jan. 4-22).
Game 4: Denver Nuggets vs. Utah Jazz (UTA Leads 2-1), 9:00 ET
- Donovan Mitchell continues to lead the playoffs in scoring at 35.7 points per game, while shooting 56.7% from the field, 50.0% from three (on 9.3 3PA per game) and 96.2% from the fourth line. Mitchell has four success against all Nuggets defenders as he’s scoring at least 16 points in head-to-head matchups with five different Denver defenders.
- In his first game of the playoffs, Mike Conley scored 27 points on 7-8 shooting from beyond the arc in Game 3. It was the eighth time in his career that Conley has made at least 7 3-pointers in a playoff game.
- The Jazz are averaging 36.3 points in the third quarter during this series; they have outscored the Nuggets by an average of 13.7 points in the third quarter as Denver ranks last among all playoff teams at 22.7 points. Utah is shooting 56.3% from the field and 60.7% from three on 9.3 attempts in the third quarter.
- A key for the Jazz defense is contesting shots without fouling. Through three games, the Jazz have the best opponents free throw rate at just 0.197. Utah has allowed the fewest free throw attempts per game (17.3), while they lead all teams in contested shots (38.7).
- Through the first three games, Rudy Gobert has defended Nikola Jokic for 26:45 of matchup time. During that time, Jokic has scored 64 points (21.3 per game), while shooting 52.2% from the file and 50% (7-14) from three. Gobert has limited Jokic’s playmaking, holding him to four assists against four turnovers and three blocks during their head-to-head matchups.
