NBA Finals: Three takeaways from Raptors' Game 4 win over Warriors

Here are three takeaways from the Toronto Raptors' 105-92 victory as it claimed a 3-1 series lead in the NBA Finals.

Toronto Raptors has a maiden NBA championship in sight after winning Game 4 on Friday .

Toronto topped the Golden State Warriors 105-92 in what might be the last game Golden State ever play at Oracle Arena to claim a 3-1 series lead. Raptors has a chance to close the series out at home and knock off the two-time defending champion on Monday.

Here are three takeaways from Toronto's victory.

 

Shooting was horrendous

Neither side shot the ball well from behind the arc in Game 4.

Both teams combined to make four of their 30 three-point attempts in the first half and finished making just 30.5 per cent. Some hot shooters got uncharacteristically cold along the way.

Stephen Curry was two for nine from range while Danny Green, who made six three-pointers last game, converted just one of his seven long heaves. When it came down to it, the outcome had to be decided in the trenches.

 

Leonard ascended to another level

Kawhi Leonard has shown he has what it takes to carry a franchise throughout the postseason and had his most impressive championship showing, tallying 36 points and 12 rebounds on Friday. The Raptors superstar scored 17 points in the third quarter alone and demanded double teams down the stretch as his team pulled away.

Leonard has posted more than 30 points in three straight games, and his best could still be ahead of him.

 

Warriors don't have as much firepower as you think

Players not named Stephen Curry or Klay Thompson combined to score 37 of the Warriors' 92 points. Golden State utilised 10 players in its rotation, but did not get valuable contributions from its most important role players.

Andre Iguodala and DeMarcus Cousins combined for nine points on four-of-12 shooting. Kevon Looney was a pleasant surprise and scored 10 points despite suffering a fracture near his collarbone two games ago, but his efforts were not enough.

Thompson was expected to push Warriors back over the top when he returned from his hamstring injury, but offence seems to be in short supply now for the former offensive juggernaut.