The Golden State Warriors are facing their moment of truth, trailing the Oklahoma City Thunder 2-1 in the Western Conference finals with Game 4 on Tuesday in Oklahoma City.
There are other instances of great regular-season teams facing a moment of truth in a postseason series. How did those teams fare?
2014-15 Warriors
Last year’s Warriors (67-15) faced a 2-1 deficit in the NBA Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Warriors won Game 4 in Cleveland by 21, Game 5 at home by 13 and Game 6 back in Cleveland by eight to take the series in six games. The key to the series was Andre Iguodala, who shadowed LeBron James. In the final three games of that series, James shot 39 percent from the field.
2012-13 Heat
The 2012-13 Miami Heat (66-16) were down 3-2 in the NBA Finals against the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs were 28 seconds from a title and up by five points. But the Heat rallied to tie the score on Ray Allen’s 3-pointer from the corner with 5.2 seconds remaining and won in overtime. They won Game 7, 95-88, to win the title.
2011-12 Heat
The Heat were down 3-2 in the Eastern Conference finals to the Boston Celtics, a team that had been a nemesis for James. He scored 45 points and had 15 rebounds in a 98-79 win in Game 6 in Boston, then had 31 points and 12 rebounds in Game 7 to clinch the series.
1984-85 Lakers
The gut-check for the Magic Johnson/Kareem Abdul-Jabbar-led Los Angeles Lakers against the Celtics came after a 34-point loss in Game 1 (similar to the Warriors’ lopsided loss in Game 3). The Lakers won Game 2, 109-102, and blew the Celtics out by 25 in Game 3. After the Celtics tied the series in Game 4, the Lakers won the last two games, clinching the series with an 11-point win in Boston.
Comparison to other sports
1998 Yankees
The 1998 New York Yankees might be the closest thing to these Warriors. They went 114-48 in the regular season and advanced to the American League Championship Series against the Cleveland Indians. The Yankees trailed 2-1 in that series after the Indians won handily behind Bartolo Colon in Game 3.
Rookie Orlando Hernandez rose to the occasion in Game 4, pitching seven innings in a 4-0 win. The Yankees never trailed in Game 5 or Game 6, won the series in six games and then swept the Padres in the World Series.
1994 Rangers
The 1994 New York Rangers won the Presidents’ Trophy as the NHL’s best regular-season team. With three future Hall of Famers leading the way -- Mark Messier, Brian Leetch and Glenn Anderson -- New York was out to win its first Stanley Cup in 54 years and end one of the most memorable championship droughts in sports.
In the Eastern Conference finals, though, against their bitter rivals, the New Jersey Devils, the Rangers trailed 3-2 and faced elimination on the road. That’s when Messier scored perhaps the most famous hat trick in NHL history, netting three goals in a 4-2 Rangers win.
The Rangers defeated the Devils in seven games and went on to edge the Vancouver Canucks to win that elusive Cup.